From cropland to cropped field: A robust algorithm for national-scale mapping by fusing time series of Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2

Detailed and updated maps of actively cropped fields on a national scale are vital for global food security. Unfortunately, this information is not provided in existing land cover datasets, especially lacking in smallholder farmer systems. Mapping national-scale cropped fields remains challenging due to the spectral confusion with abandoned vegetated land, and their high heterogeneity over large areas. This study proposed a large-area mapping framework for automatically identifying actively cropped fields by fusing Vegetation-Soil-Pigment indices and Synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) time-series images (VSPS). Three temporal indicators were proposed and highlighted cropped fields by consistently higher values due to cropping activities. The proposed VSPS algorithm was exploited for national-scale mapping in China without regional adjustments using Sentinel-2 and Sentinel-1 images. Agriculture in China illustrated great heterogeneity and has experienced tremendous changes such as non-grain orientation and cropland abandonment. Yet, little is known about the locations and extents of cropped fields cultivated with field crops on a national scale. Here, we produced the first national-scale 20 m updated map of cropped and fallow/abandoned land in China and found that 77 % of national cropland (151.23 million hectares) was actively cropped in 2020. We found that fallow/abandoned cropland in mountainous and hilly regions were far more than we expected, which was significantly underestimated by the commonly applied VImax-based approach based on the MODIS images. The VSPS method illustrates robust generalization capabilities, which obtained an overall accuracy of 94 % based on 4,934 widely spread reference sites. The proposed mapping framework is capable of detecting cropped fields with a full consideration of a high diversity of cropping systems and complexity of fallow/abandoned cropland. The processing codes on Google Earth Engine were provided and hoped to stimulate operational agricultural mapping on cropped fields with finer resolution from the national to the global scale

The Anti-Inflammatory Effect of Fructus Kochiae on Allergic Contact Dermatitis Rats via pERK1/2/TLR4/NF-κB Pathway Activation

Allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) is a common irritability skin disease, which can be cured by using the Chinese patent medicine. To explore the pharmacological effect of total flavonoids of Fructus Kochiae (FK) on ACD, we used dinitrochlorobenzene- (DNCB-) induced ACD rats. Five groups were used in our experiments. The normal group and the DNCB group were treated with 0.5% CMC-Na; the DNCB + hFK group was treated with a high dose of total flavonoids of FK (200 mg/kg); the DNCB + lFK group was treated with a low dose of FK (100 mg/kg); the DNCB + Pre group was treated with prednisolone acetate (2.5 mg/kg). The results showed that FK treatment had significantly attenuated the inflammation induced by DNCB. The increased concentration of cytokines including IL-6, IL-18, and IFN-γ in ACD rats could be reversed by the FK administration, while IL-10 expressed the opposite result; the expression level of TLR4, pERK1/2, and NF-κB could be downregulated by the treatment with FK in the ACD rat. In a word, the total flavonoids of the FK had an anti-inflammatory effect on the DNCB-induced ACD rat; this regulatory mechanism was highly possible based on the pERK1/2/TLR4-NF-κB pathway activation

Antidiabetic Activity of Polysaccharides from Tuberous Root of Liriope spicata var. prolifera in KKAy Mice

Tuberous root of Liriope spicata var. prolifera has been widely used as a traditional Chinese medicine for the treatment of diabetes. The present study investigated the antidiabetic effect and the potential mechanisms of two new polysaccharides (LSP1, LSP2) and the total polysaccharides (TLSP), isolated from the tuberous roots. Upon the intragastric administration in obese insulin-resistant diabetic KKAy mice for 28 days, TLSP, LSP1, and LSP2 all caused a remarkable decrease of fasting blood glucose and significant improvement of insulin resistance and serum lipid metabolism in diabetic mice. In addition, liver histological analysis showed that TLSP, LSP1, and LSP2 significantly ameliorated the hepatocyte hypertrophy and decreased the lipid accumulation in the mice liver. Further experiments suggested that TLSP, LSP1, and LSP2 effectively inhibited hepatic gluconeogenesis and increased hepatic glycolysis and hepatic glycogen content. Furthermore, the mechanistic analysis showed the increased expression of insulin-receptor α subunit, insulin-receptor substrate-1, phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase, and peroxisome proliferators-activated receptors γ. These results suggested that TLSP, LSP1, and LSP2 manifest strong antidiabetic activity, therefore hold a great promise for therapeutic application in diabetic therapy and other related metabolic disorders

Kochiae Fructus, the Fruit of Common Potherb Kochia scoparia (L.) Schrad: A Review on Phytochemistry, Pharmacology, Toxicology, Quality Control, and Pharmacokinetics

Kochiae Fructus (KF) is the fruit of an annual potherb Kochia scoparia (Linn.) Schrad and has been traditionally used for the treatment of diseases in the skin, eyes, and urinary tract for thousands of years in China. Recent studies have showed its anti-inflammatory, antifungal, antiallergic, and antipruritogenic effects to clarify the mechanisms of these actions. Meanwhile, its other effects, such as anticancer, hypoglycemic, and hepatoprotective effects, also have been reported. The achievement of these therapeutic effects is contributed by its chemical constituents. A total of 153 compounds have been identified in KF, mainly including triterpenoids, flavonoids, carbohydrates, amino acids, organic acids, and essential oils. Momordin Ic is the representative triterpene glycoside compound, which is used as a phytochemical marker for the quality control of Kochiae Fructus. The research on toxicity is insufficient, and only one article reported that the LD50 was 7.15 ± 0.03 g/kg for water extract of KF after oral administration in KM mice. In addition, the pharmacokinetic study was carried out on momordin Ic with linear pharmacokinetic characteristics. Above all, this review provides comprehensive information about Kochiae Fructus and may provide the theoretic foundation of its clinical application and further development

Hypoglycemic Activity and Antioxidative Stress of Extracts and Corymbiferin from Swertia bimaculata In Vitro and In Vivo

The present study was to investigate the anti-diabetic activities of Swertia bimaculata. Based on the glucose consumption of S. bimaculata extractsand different fractions (petroleum, dichloromethane, ethyl acetate, n-butanol and water extracts) in 3T3-L1 adipocyte assay, ethanol (ETH) and dichloromethane (DTH) extracts had the most effective potency. Furthermore, ETH, DTH and corymbiferin (the most abundant component of DTH) were evaluated for anti-diabetic effects in high fat and sucrose fed combined with low dose streptozocin induced diabetic rats. DTH and corymbiferin displayed remarkable anti-diabetic activities. The fasting blood glucose levels were significantly decreased, while the serum insulin levels were obviously increased. The oral glucose tolerance was also improved. The lowed serum total cholesterol, low density lipoprotein (LDL) and triglyceride levels and increased ratio of HDL (high density lipoprotein)/LDL were observed. The insulin sensitivity was improved on the basis of increased expressions of insulin-receptor substrate-2, phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase and Ser/Thr kinase AKT2. And also DTH and corymbiferin improved antioxidant capacity and carbohydrate metabolism in diabetic rats, along with the improvement of histopathology of livers and pancreatic β cells. Corymbiferin was one of active constituents, responsible for anti-diabetic properties. Therefore, S. bimaculata could be considered as an alternative agent against diabetes mellitus

Metabolomic Study on the Preventive Effect of Patrinia scabiosaefolia Fisch on Multipathogen Induced Pelvic Inflammatory Disease in Rats

Patrinia scabiosaefolia Fisch (PSF), a well-known traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), has been used as a “heat-clearing and detoxifying” agent. The present study was to illustrate the preventive effect of PSF on pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) in rats. The PID model was constructed by multipathogen infection of the upper genital tract with reference to the method previously reported. Urine metabolomic analysis was conducted with a GC-MS coupled with derivatization method. In this study, PID rats showed obvious infiltration of inflammatory cells and elevated expression of cytokines (IL-1β and IL-6) in upper genital tract, compared with control rats. Sixteen differentiating metabolites contributed to the alteration of metabolic profile in PID rats, including two amino acids, three fat acids, nine organic acids, and two types of sugars. The rats, infected by multipathogen and administered with PSF, showed decreased infiltration of inflammatory cells and lowered expression of cytokines in upper genital tract, compared with PID rats. Meanwhile, PSF intervened in the PID-associated alterations in TCA cycle, sugar metabolism, amino acid metabolism, and other uncertain metabolic pathways. These results indicate that PSF has preventive effect on multipathogen induced PID and holistic interventional effect on disease-associated metabolomic change