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Non-specific endonucleases can be used for the digestion of nucleic acids because they hydrolyze DNA/RNA into 3–5 base pairs (bp) length oligonucleotide fragments without strict selectivity. In this work, a novel non-specific endonuclease from Pseudomonas fluorescens (PfNuc) with high activities for both DNA and RNA was successfully cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli. The production of PfNuc in flask scale could be achieved to 1.73 × 106 U/L and 4.82 × 106 U/L for DNA and RNA by investigation of the culture and induction conditions. The characterization of PfNuc indicated that it was Mg2+-dependent and the catalytic activity was enhanced by 3.74 folds for DNA and 1.06 folds for RNA in the presence of 5 mM Mg2+. The specific activity of PfNuc for DNA was 1.44 × 105 U/mg at pH 8.0 and 40 °C, and 3.93 × 105 U/mg for RNA at pH 8.5 and 45 °C. The Km of the enzyme for both DNA and RNA was close to 43 µM. The Vmax was 6.40 × 105 U/mg and 1.11 × 106 U/mg for DNA and RNA, respectively. There was no observed activity loss when PfNuc was stored at 4 °C and − 20 °C after 28 days or 10 repeated freeze–thaw cycles at − 80 °C. Molecular docking revealed that PfNuc formed 17 and 19 hydrogen bonds with single-stranded RNA and double-stranded DNA, respectively. These results could explain the high activity and stability of PfNuc, suggesting its great potential applications in the industry and clinic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and aim: Previous studies reported inconsistent results on the prevalence and prognostic implications of frailty among older adults with gastric cancer. This systematic review synthesized available literature pertaining on this topic to establish the prevalence and unfavorable outcomes of frailty in older adults with gastric cancer. Methods: A comprehensive search was conducted across multiple English databases including PubMed, Cochrane Library, CINAHL, Embase, and Web of Science as well as Chinese databases, namely, CNKI, Wan Fang, and CBM, from inception to July 4, 2023, to identify potential studies. Data related to the incidence of frailty and its unfavorable outcomes in older adults with gastric cancer were extracted. RevMan5.3 and R 4.2.2 were used to evaluate pooled prevalence, hazard ratios (HR), and 95% confidence interval (CI). Results: This review comprehensively selected 13 studies, comprising 9 cohort studies and 4 cross-sectional studies, on 44,117 older adults diagnosed with gastric cancer. The incidence of frailty among older adults with gastric cancer ranged from 10 to 71%. The pooled prevalence of frailty was 29% (95% CI 0.21–0.39). Frailty was found to be associated with an elevated risk of postoperative complications (HR = 1.99, 95% CI 1.45–2.73), prolonged postoperative hospital stay (HR = 2.68, 95% CI 2.38–3.02), likelihood of readmission (HR = 3.28, 95% CI 1.77–6.08), and an increased mortality risk (HR = 1.60, 95% CI 1.36–1.90). Conclusions: Frailty was associated with a poor prognosis in older adults with gastric cancer. Clinical medical staff should focus on the frailty of older adults with gastric cancer, conduct large-scale, multicenter, and prospective studies and early screening of patients, and provide guidance for the implementation of prevention and treatment strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Gejiu ore district (~ 3.2 Mt Sn) is located in eastern Yunnan Province, southwest China, and is one of the largest Sn polymetallic ore districts in the world. Athough it has been widely studied, the petrogenesis of ore-related granites is still unclear. In this paper, we present petrological, geochemical, and geochronological data on the granites associated with the Kafang Cu–Sn deposit in the Gejiu ore district (65 Mt Cu ore at a grade of 1.2% and 32 Mt Sn ore at a grade of 0.6%). We use these data to constrain the source, evolution, oxygen fugacity, and tectonic setting of the granitic magmatism. Zircon U–Pb dating yielded an age of 82.8 ± 0.6 Ma for the Kafang granite. The high zircon δ18O values (7.45–9.74‰; mean = 8.80‰) and narrow range of εNd(t) values (–9.0 to –7.7) of the Kafang granite indicate a highly evolved S-type granite derived by partial melting of metamorphic basement rocks of the Jiangnan orogenic belt. Rayleigh fractional crystallization modeling, along with the increase in Hf and Sn contents and decrease in Eu/Eu* values of zircons, record extensive fractional crystallization, and Sn enrichment during magmatic evolution. The Kafang granite was relatively reduced, as evidenced by low zircon Ce/Ce* (10.0–366; mean = 171), (Ce/Nd)N (0.76–8.32; mean = 4.41), △FMQ (–2.5 to 1.2) values, and Fe3+-depleted biotite compositions (Fe3+/(Fe3+ + Fe2+) = 0–0.10), which were favorable for Sn mineralization but not for Cu mineralization. Copper in the Kafang deposit may not have been derived from the granite. Our results suggest that biotite and zircon geochemical compositions, particularly biotite Mg# and A/CNK values and zircon Hf contents, Eu anomalies, and Ce/Ce* and (Ce/Nd)N ratios, are robust tracers of different types of magmatic-hydrothermal ore deposits (i.e., Cu, Mo, W, and Sn). Late Cretaceous magmatism in the Gejiu region and other areas along the southern margin of South China formed an E–W-trending igneous belt that was likely related to northward subduction of the Neo-Tethyan plate rather than northwestward subduction of the Paleo-Pacific plate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we propose a two-party quantum private comparison (QPC) protocol using orthogonal product states. This protocol introduces a semi-honest third party who will faithfully execute the protocol and will not conspire with any of the participants. Every participant encodes the hash value of her (his) secret data into a quantum sequence of orthogonal product states. Each of these states comes from a locally indistinguishable set of product states. To ensure information security, each participant splits the quantum sequence of product states that she (he) generates into two single-particle sequences and transmits these two single-particle sequences separately. After the third party calculates and publishes the results, the two participants can know whether their secret information is equal by a simple calculation. Security and efficiency analyses show that our protocol is secure and efficient. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A large body of literature has shown that ginseng had a role in diabetes mellitus management. Ginsenosides are the main active components of ginseng. But what ginsenosides can manage in diabetic are not systematic. The targets of these ginsenosides are still incomplete. Our aim was to identify which ginsenosides can manage diabetes mellitus through network pharmacology and molecular docking. To identify the targets of these ginsenosides. In this work, we retrieved and screened ginsenosides and corresponding diabetes mellitus targets across multiple databases. PPI networks of the genes were constructed using STRING, and the core targets were screened out through topological analysis. Gene Ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes enrichment analyses were performed by using the R language. Finally, molecular docking was performed after bioinformatics analysis for verification. Our research results showed that 28 ginsenosides in ginseng might be against diabetes mellitus by modulating related proteins such as VEGFA, Caspase 3, and TNF-α. Among the 28 ginsenosides, 20(R)-Protopanaxatriol, 20(R)-Protopanaxadiol, and Ginsenoside Rg1 might play a significant role. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes and Gene Ontology enrichment analysis showed that the management of diabetes mellitus by ginsenosides may be related to the positive regulation of reactive oxygen metabolic processes, associated with the insulin signaling pathway, TNF signaling pathway, and AMPK signaling pathway. Molecular docking results and molecular dynamics simulation showed that most ginsenosides could stably bind to the core target, mainly hydrogen bonding and hydrophobic bond. This study suggests the management of ginseng on diabetes mellitus. We believe that our results can contribute to the systematic study of the mechanism of ginsenosides for the management of diabetes mellitus. At the same time, it can provide a theoretical basis for subsequent studies on the management of ginsenosides in diabetes mellitus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Magnolia bark is an edible traditional Chinese medicine that has antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus. In the present study, interactions between S. aureus DNA and raw magnolia bark (RMB) and ginger mix-fried magnolia bark (GMB) aqueous extracts were determined via spectroscopic methods. Fluorescence spectroscopy and Stern–Volmer constants showed that S. aureus DNA quenched the fluorescence of the extracts by static quenching. UV–Vis spectroscopy and iodide quenching experiments indicated that the interactions between S. aureus DNA and the fluorescent substances might involve groove binding or electrostatic interactions. In 4′, 6-diamidino-2-phenylindole competitive assays, the fluorescence intensity at decreased as the extract amount was increased. This indicates that groove binding is responsible for the fluorescence quenching. The antibacterial activity of GMB aqueous extract treated under light, cold, heat and cycling hot–cold conditions decreased by 13.99, 9.31, 10.89 and 14.40%, respectively, whereas that of RMB aqueous extract treated under the same conditions decreased by 8.91, 14.99, 14.99 and 13.70%, respectively. The results indicate that S. aureus DNA quenches the fluorescence of GMB and RMB aqueous extracts by grooving interactions. Additionally, the antibacterial activities of GMB and RMB extracts are sensitive to light and temperature, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]