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Based on the inhibition of mitochondrial permeability transition pore (mPTP) opening, puerarin (PUE) has a good potential to reduce myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury (MI/RI). However, the lack of targeting of free PUE makes it difficult to reach the mitochondria. In this paper, we constructed matrix metalloproteinase-targeting peptide (MMP-TP) and triphenylphosphonium (TPP) cation co-modified liposomes loaded with PUE (PUE@T/M-L) for mitochondria-targeted drug delivery. PUE@T/M-L had a favorable particle size of 144.9 ± 0.8 nm, an encapsulation efficiency of 78.9 ± 0.6%, and a sustainedrelease behavior. The results of cytofluorimetric experiments showed that MMP-TP and TPP doublemodified liposomes (T/M-L) enhanced intracellular uptake, escaped lysosomal capture, and promoted drug targeting into mitochondria. In addition, PUE@T/M-L enhanced the viability of hypoxia-reoxygenation (H/R) injured H9c2 cells by inhibiting mPTP opening and reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, reducing Bax expression and increasing Bcl-2 expression. It was inferred that PUE@T/M-L delivered PUE into the mitochondria of H/R injured H9c2 cells, resulting in a significant increase in cellular potency. Based on the ability of MMP-TP to bind the elevated expression of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), T/M-L had excellent tropism for Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) -stimulated macrophages and can significantly reduce TNF-a and ROS levels, thus allowing both drug accumulation in ischemic cardiomyocytes and reducing inflammatory stimulation during MI/RI. Fluorescence imaging results of the targeting effect using a DiR probe also indicated that DiR@T/M-L could accumulate and retain in the ischemic myocardium. Taken together, these results demonstrated the promising application of PUE@T/M-L for mitochondria-targeted drug delivery to achieve maximum therapeutic efficacy of PUE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The flower buds of Lonicera japonica Thunb. are widely used in Chinese medicine for their anti-inflammatory properties, and they have played an important role in the fight against SARS COVID-19 and other major epidemics. However, due to the lack of scientific and accurate variety identification methods and national unified standards, scattered and non-standardized management in flower bud production has led to mixed varieties that have caused significant difficulties in the cataloging and preservation of germplasm resources and the identification, promotion, and application of new L. japonica varieties. Methods: In this study, we evaluated the population structure, genetic relationships, and genetic fingerprints of 39 germplasm resources of Lonicera in China using simplified genome sequencing technology. Results: A total of 13,143,268 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were identified. Thirty-nine samples of Lonicera were divided into four subgroups, and the population structure and genetic relationships among existing Lonicera germplasm resources were determined using principal component analysis, population structure analysis, and phylogenetic tree analysis. Through several stringent selection criteria, 15 additional streamlined, high-quality DNA fingerprints were filtered out of the validated 50 SNP loci and verified as being able to effectively identify the 39 Lonicera varieties. Discussion: To our knowledge, this is the first comprehensive studymeasuring the diversity and population structure of a large collection of Lonicera varieties inChina. These results have greatly broadenedour understandingof the diversity, phylogeny, and population structure of Lonicera. The resultsmay enhance the future analysis of genetic diversity, species identification, property rights disputes, and molecular breeding by providing a scientific basis and reference data for these efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction There is a growing number of randomised controlled trials (RCTs) that focus on functional changes in the brain detected by functional MRI (fMRI) and gut microbiota composition changes after using probiotics. However, the effect of probiotics on functional changes in the brain through gut microbiota remains controversial in existing RCTs. Furthermore, to our knowledge, there is no systematic review to evaluate the effect of probiotics on functional changes in the brain through gut microbiota. Therefore, we aim to summarise literatures evaluating the potential association between probiotics, gut microbiota and functional changes in the brain to elucidate whether probiotics influence gut microbiota and affect functional changes in the brain through gut microbiota. Methods and analysis China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang Data, VIP Databases (the Chongqing VIP Chinese Science and Technology Periodical Database), SinoMed, PubMed, Web of Science, MEDLINE (The National Library of Medicine), EMBASE (Excerpt Medica Database), Scopus, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials and ClinicalTrials. gov will be searched until July 2019. The Grey Literature in Europe (OpenSIGLE) database and Google search engine will also be used. The reference lists of each included study will be reviewed to determine whether there are any further relevant studies. RCTs using probiotics compared with a placebo/control will be included. We will use risk of bias assessment and the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) system to assess the quality of evidence. The results of the systematic review will be synthesised narratively in the domains of the three primary outcome measures: (1) Increased/decreased activity in brain regions or altered functional connectivity (FC) of brain detected by fMRI and their association with changes in behaviour, gastrointestinal/emotional symptoms after using probiotics. (2) Changes in composition and diversity of the gut microbiota and their association with changes in behaviour, gastrointestinal/emotional symptoms after using probiotics. (3) Increased/decreased activity in brain regions or altered FC of brain detected by fMRI and the changes in composition or diversity of the gut microbiota after administration of probiotics. Ethics and dissemination The results will be disseminated through a peer-reviewed publication. As no private and confidential patient data will be included in the reporting, there are no ethical considerations associated with this protocol. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction Xerostomia is a common symptom in patients with cancer. Currently available methods to manage xerostomia include stringent oral hygiene using fluoride agents and antimicrobials, saliva substitutes and sialagogic agents, but side effects such as headache, dizziness and sweating can occur with these therapies. Clinical trials have shown that acupuncture may be effective in treating xerostomia. The objective of this systematic review is to assess the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture treatment for xerostomia caused by cancer. Methods and analysis This systematic review will incorporate articles identified by electronically searching the following databases: PubMed, MEDLINE, the Cochrane Library, AMED, EMbase, WorldSciNet, Nature, Science Online, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, the Chongqing VIP Chinese Science and Technology Periodical Database, the Wanfang Database and China Biology Medicine Disc from inception to 1 December 2019. Other sources including conference proceedings and reference lists of identified publications and existing systematic reviews will also be searched. Two reviewers will independently search the databases, perform data extraction and assess the quality of studies. Data will be synthesised using either a fixed-effects model or a random-effects model, according to heterogeneity testing. Patient-reported change in the Visual Analogue Scale or the Xerostomia Inventory will be assessed as the primary outcome. Saliva collection, whole saliva production and the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire C30 will be evaluated as secondary outcomes. RevMan V. 5.3 will be employed for data analysis. The results will be expressed as risk ratios for dichotomous data and mean differences for continuous data. Ethics and dissemination This protocol will not evaluate individual patient information or affect patient rights and therefore does not require ethical approval. Results from this review will be disseminated through peer-reviewed journals and conference reports. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Avoidance of disadvantageous genetic correlations among growth duration and yield traits is critical in developing crop varieties that efficiently use light and energy resources and produce high yields. To understand the genetic basis underlying the correlations among heading date and three major yield traits in rice, we investigated the four traits in a diverse and representative core collection of 266 cultivated rice accessions in both long-day and short-day environments, and conducted the genome-wide association study using 4.6million single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). There were clear positive correlation between heading date and grain number per panicle, and negative correlation between grain number per panicle and panicle number, as well as different degrees of correlations among other traits in different subspecies and environments. We detected 47 pleiotropic genes in 15 pleiotropic quantitative trait loci (pQTLs), 18 pleiotropic genes containing 37 pleiotropic SNPs in 8 pQTLs, 27 pQTLs with r2 of linkage disequilibrium higher than 0.2, and 39 pairs of interactive genes from 8 metabolic pathways that may contribute to the above phenotypic correlations, but these genetic bases were different for correlations among different traits. Distributions of haplotypes revealed that selection for pleiotropic genes or interactive genes controlling different traits focused on genotypes with weak effect or on those balancing two traits that maximized production but sometimes their utilization strategies depend on the traits and environment. Detection of pQTLs and interactive genes and associated molecular markers will provide an ability to overcome disadvantageous correlations and to utilize the advantageous correlations among traits through marker-assisted selection in breeding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Arsenic trioxide (As2O3) has been verified as a breakthrough in the management of acute promyelocytic leukemia in recent decades. However, cardiotoxicity, especially long QT syndrome (LQTS) has become the most important issue during As2O3 treatment. The characterized mechanisms behind this adverse effect are inhibition of cardiac hERG channel trafficking and increase of cardiac calcium currents. In our study, we found a new pathway underlying As2O3-induced cardiotoxicity that As2O3 accelerates lysosomal degradation of hERG on plasma membrane after using brefeldin A (BFA) to block protein trafficking. Then we explored pharmacological rescue strategies on As2O3-induced LQTS and found that 4 therapeutic agents exert rescue efficacy via 3 different pathways: fexofenadine and astemizole facilitate hERG trafficking via promotion of channel-chaperone formation after As2O3 incubation; ranolazine slows hERG degradation in the presence of As2O3 and resveratrol shows significant attenuation on calcium current increase triggered by As2O3. Moreover, we used humaninduced pluripotent stem cell derived cardiomyocytes (hiPS-CMs) to evaluate the rescue effects of the above agents on As2O3-induced prolongation of action potential duration (APD) and demonstrated that fexofenadine and resveratrol significantly ameliorate the prolonged APD. These observations suggested that pharmacological chaperone like fexofenadine and resveratrol might have the potential to protect against the cardiotoxicity of As2O3. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dissolved oxygen (DO) is a key factor that influences the healthy growth of fishes in aquaculture. The DO content changes with the aquatic environment and should therefore be monitored online. However, traditional measurement methods, such as iodometry and other chemical analysis methods, are not suitable for online monitoring. The Clark method is not stable enough for extended periods of monitoring. To solve these problems, this paper proposes an intelligent DO measurement method based on the fluorescence quenching mechanism. The measurement system is composed of fluorescent quenching detection, signal conditioning, intelligent processing, and power supply modules. The optical probe adopts the fluorescent quenching mechanism to detect the DO content and solves the problem, whereas traditional chemical methods are easily influenced by the environment. The optical probe contains a thermistor and dual excitation sources to isolate visible parasitic light and execute a compensation strategy. The intelligent processing module adopts the IEEE 1451.2 standard and realizes intelligent compensation. Experimental results show that the optical measurement method is stable, accurate, and suitable for online DO monitoring in aquaculture applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

HSP22 is a member of a small HSP subfamily contributing to the growth, transformation and apoptosis of the cell as well as acting as a molecular chaperone. In the present study, CfHSP22 cDNA was cloned from Chlamys farreri by the rapid amplification of cDNA ends technique. The full-length cDNA of CfHSP22 was of 1279 bp, consisting of a 5′-terminal untranslated region (5′UTR) of 122 bp, a 3′UTR of 581 bp with a canonical polyadenylation signal sequence AATAAA and a poly(A) tail, and an open reading frame of 576 bp encoding a polypeptide with a molecular mass of 22.21 kDa and a predicted isoelectric point of 9.69. There was an α-crystallin domain, a hallmark of the sHSP subfamily, in the C-terminus, and the deduced amino acid sequence of CfHSP22 showed high similarity to previously identified HSP22s. CfHSP22 was constitutively expressed in the haemocyte, muscle, kidney, gonad, gill, heart and hepatopancreas, and the expression level in the hepatopancreas was higher than that in the other tissues. CfHSP22 transcription was up-regulated and reached a maximal level at 12 h after the bacterial challenge, and then declined progressively to the original level at 48 h. These results suggested that CfHSP22 perhaps play a critical role in response to the bacterial challenge in haemocytes of scallop C. farreri. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soybean hull peroxidase (SHP) was crystallised from an enzyme solution with low purity by a simple method. The enzyme solution was purified by cooperation salting out of acetone and ammonium sulphate, and lumpy crystals were obtained with the size of about 40 × 30 μm when ammonium sulphate was quickly added to the enzyme solution. The crystal was examined and confirmed to be an SHP crystal by the method of activity test. The result shows that, though the purity of the enzyme solution was not high, crystals could be formed when the enzyme solution rapidly reached to a degree of supersaturation, which was different from the traditional methods of protein crystallisation. Additionally, a purification method of acetone and ammonium sulphate fractional salting out was also studied, in which the procedure was simplified, and a satisfactory purification effect was obtained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]