Preparation and Membrane Permeability of Curcumin Nanoparticles by Subcritical Water Technology

Curcumin (Cur) nanoparticles were prepared by subcritical water (SBCW) method and its membrane permeability was evaluated. The processing conditions for the preparation of curcumin nanoparticles were investigated in terms of its particle size distribution, polydispersity index (PDI) and zeta potential, and the prepared nanoparticles were characterized and evaluated for in vitro membrane permeability. The results showed that nanoparticles with a diameter of 166 nm and a drug loading of 70.2% were obtained under the conditions: SBCW temperature 120 ℃, receiving solvent temperature 0 ℃, subcritical water/receiving solution ratio 1:3 (V/V), 0.04 g/100 mL lactose as stabilizing agent, and 30% (V/V) ethanol as entrainer. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy showed no structural changes in Cur. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) showed that Cur nanoparticles were uniformly spherical in shape. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analysis showed a decrease in the crystallinity of the nanoparticles. Cur nanoparticles exhibited excellent membrane permeability in vitro, and the permeation rate in the first two hours was 25 folds higher than that of free Cur. Furthermore, Cur nanoparticles exhibited good transmembrane capacity in rabbits and significantly enhanced the bioavailability of Cur. The preparation of Cur nanoparticles using subcritical water method has the advantages of high drug loading, good membrane permeability, no need for carriers, simple process, and green environmental protection

Discrimination of Panax ginseng from counterfeits using single nucleotide polymorphism: A focused review

Discrimination of plant species, cultivars, and landraces is challenging because plants have high phenotypic and genotypic resemblance. Panax ginseng is commonly referred to as Korean ginseng, which contains saponins with high efficacy on cells, and has been reported to be worth billions in agroeconomic value. Korean ginseng’s increasing global agroeconomic value includes additional species and cultivars that are not Korean ginseng but have physical characteristics close to it. This almost unidentifiable physical characteristic of Korean ginseng-like species is discriminated via molecular markers. Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP), found across the plant species in abundance, is a valuable tool in the molecular mapping of genes and distinguishing a plant species from adulterants. Differentiating the composition of genes in species is quite evident, but the varieties and landraces have fewer differences in addition to single nucleotide mismatch. Especially in the exon region, there exist both favorable and adverse effects on species. With the aforementioned ideas in discriminating ginseng based on molecular markers, SNP has proven reliable and convenient, with advanced markers available. This article provides the simplest cost-effective guidelines for experiments in a traditional laboratory setting to get hands-on SNP marker analysis. Hence, the current review provides detailed up-to-date information about the discrimination of Panax ginseng exclusively based on SNP adding with a straightforward method explained which can be followed to perform the analysis

A Comparative Study of Systolic and Diastolic Mechanical Synchrony in Canine, Primate, and Healthy and Failing Human Hearts.

Aim: Mechanical dyssynchrony (MD) is associated with heart failure (HF) and may be prognostically important in cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT). Yet, little is known about its patterns in healthy or diseased hearts. We here investigate and compare systolic and diastolic MD in both right (RV) and left ventricles (LV) of canine, primate and healthy and failing human hearts. Methods and Results: RV and LV mechanical function were examined by pulse-wave Doppler in 15 beagle dogs, 59 rhesus monkeys, 100 healthy human subjects and 39 heart failure (HF) patients. This measured RV and LV pre-ejection periods (RVPEP and LVPEP) and diastolic opening times (Q-TVE and Q-MVE). The occurrence of right (RVMDs) and left ventricular systolic mechanical delay (LVMDs) was assessed by comparing RVPEP and LVPEP values. That of right (RVMDd) and left ventricular diastolic mechanical delay (LVMDd) was assessed from the corresponding diastolic opening times (Q-TVE and Q-MVE). These situations were quantified by values of interventricular systolic (IVMDs) and diastolic mechanical delays (IVMDd), represented as positive if the relevant RV mechanical events preceded those in the LV. Healthy hearts in all species examined showed greater LV than RV delay times and therefore positive IVMDs and IVMDd. In contrast a greater proportion of the HF patients showed both markedly increased IVMDs and negative IVMDd, with diastolic mechanical asynchrony negatively correlated with LVEF. Conclusion: The present IVMDs and IVMDd findings have potential clinical implications particularly for personalized setting of parameter values in CRT in individual patients to achieve effective treatment of HF

An Epididymis-Specific Secretory Protein HongrES1 Critically Regulates Sperm Capacitation and Male Fertility

Mammalian sperm capacitation is an essential prerequisite to fertilizion. Although progress had been made in understanding the physiology and biochemistry of capacitation, little is known about the potential roles of epididymal proteins during this process. Here we report that HongrES1, a new member of the SERPIN (serine proteinase inhibitor) family exclusively expressed in the rat cauda epididymis and up-regulated by androgen, is secreted into the lumen and covers the sperm head. Co-culture of caudal sperms with HongrES1 antibody in vitro resulted in a significant increase in the percentage of capacitated spermatozoa. Furthermore, the percentage of capacitated spermatozoa clearly increased in rats when HongrES1 was down-regulated by RNAi in vivo. Remarkably, knockdown of HongrES1 in vivo led to reduced fertility accompanied with deformed appearance of fetuses and pups. These results identify HongrES1 as a novel and critical molecule in the regulation of sperm capacitation and male fertility

The Reading Palaeofire Database : an expanded global resource to document changes in fire regimes from sedimentary charcoal records

Sedimentary charcoal records are widely used to reconstruct regional changes in fire regimes through time in the geological past. Existing global compilations are not geographically comprehensive and do not provide consistent metadata for all sites. Furthermore, the age models provided for these records are not harmonised and many are based on older calibrations of the radiocarbon ages. These issues limit the use of existing compilations for research into past fire regimes. Here, we present an expanded database of charcoal records, accompanied by new age models based on recalibration of radiocarbon ages using IntCal20 and Bayesian age-modelling software. We document the structure and contents of the database, the construction of the age models, and the quality control measures applied. We also record the expansion of geographical coverage relative to previous charcoal compilations and the expansion of metadata that can be used to inform analyses. This first version of the Reading Palaeofire Database contains 1676 records (entities) from 1480 sites worldwide. The database (RPDv1b - Harrison et al., 2021) is available at https://doi.org/10.17864/1947.000345.Peer reviewe