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Heart failure (HF) is an advanced stage of most heart diseases. Some studies reported that Dengzhanshengmai (DZSM) capsule may improve HF, but its mechanisms are unclear. This study attempts to determine the function of DZSM in treating HF and investigates its potential mechanism. We demonstrated that DZSM can considerably reduce systemic inflammation, improve intestinal barrier functions and enhance cardiac functions in HF rats. Further investigations displayed that the beneficial effects of DZSM were related to the reduction of gut microbiota metabolite phenylacetylglutamine (PAGln) levels in serum and heart tissue. In addition, we demonstrated that PAGln can exacerbate the severity of HF in rats, and the serum PAGln levels in HF patients were higher than in healthy subjects. Moreover, by using microbial sequencing, we found that DZSM could alter the composition and function of the intestinal microbiota in HF rats, including decreased relative abundance of Turicibacter and Turicibacter_sp.TS3, and regulated the gene expression of PAGln synthesis‐related enzymes. Therefore, our findings have contributed novel perspectives on the involvement of DZSM in treating HF, specifically in its regulation of intestinal flora and associated detrimental metabolites. Furthermore, our results have offered empirical evidence supporting the utilization of DZSM as a therapeutic approach for HF. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The self-digestive solution (SDS) of the biocontrol bacterium Lysobacter enzymogenes LE16 shows strong antagonistic activities against multiple soil-borne phytopathogens but the positive evidence of this bacterium against plant foliar disease is still scanty. Thus, laboratory, greenhouse, and field experiments were carried out to estimate the efficacies of SDS, S-SDS (stored at room temperature for 12 months), and H-SDS (heated at 100°C for 30 min) against plant powdery mildew. This bacterium produced hydrolases (phosphatase, protease, lysozyme, chitinase, and β-1,3-glucanase) that degrade pathogen cell components and siderophores that compete for iron with phytopathogens. The top five antimicrobial metabolites identified in SDS were pyroglutamic acid, deoxycytidine, pyrrole-2-carboxylic acid, 13-oxo-9,11-tridecadienoic acid, and 3'-amino-3'-deoxythimidine. Among them, pyroglutamic acid may play a vital role in powdery mildew control. As a result, SDS, S-SDS, and H-SDS strongly inhibited the conidial germination of Erysiphe cichoracearum and Sphaerotheca fuliginea. The application of SDS significantly increased the activity of antioxidant enzymes in crop leaves and effectively controlled tobacco and cucumber powdery mildew in the greenhouse and the field. Therefore, L. enzymogenes LE16 can effectively control powdery mildew. The underlying mechanisms may be attributed to the induction of plant systemic resistance and the production of antifungal substances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to grasp the latest trends of medical textiles and discuss the future development direction, the fiber materials and forming technology of medical textiles in our country were introduced. The emerging technologies and important breakthroughs in the field of medical textiles in the past ten years were summarized.Focus on the design,composition and application of in vivo and in vitro medical textiles with medical protection,treatment, monitoring,health care,tissue repair,etc..The present situation and key problems of industrialization were analyzed. It is considered that the existing medical textiles in our country have the characteristics of diversification,but the basic research,technology development and commercial production of high-quality,intelligent and eco-friendly medical textiles are still in the initial stage.It is necessary to strengthen independent innovation,deepen in-depth cooperation in multiple fields,accelerate the integration of intelligent manufacturing technologies,improve the construction of industry norms and systems,develop science and technology enabling industry chains,and develop future medical textiles with advantages of light comfort,digitalization,intelligence,biofriendliness and biodegradation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tissue engineered skin and its substitutes have a promising future in wound healing. However, enabling fast formation of blood vessels during the wound healing process is still a huge challenge to the currently available wound substitutes. In this work, active mesoporous bioglass nanoparticles with a high specific surface area and doped with strontium (Sr) were fabricated for rapid microvascularization and wound healing. The as-prepared bioglass nanoparticles with Sr ions significantly promoted the proliferation of fibroblasts and microvascularization of human umbilical vein endothelial cells in vitro. Silk fibroin sponges encapsulating the nanoparticles accelerated wound healing by promoting the formation of blood vessels and epithelium in vivo. This work provides a strategy for the design and development of active biomaterials for enhancing wound healing by rapid vascularization and epithelial reconstruction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reverse osmosis (RO) membranes have been widely used in the field of membrane separation. However, most of the commercial RO membranes are fabricated based on a polysulphones- or polyethersulfone-modified polyethylene glycol terephthalate (PET) support, which are thick and exhibit poor solvent resistance. In this study, polyethylene (PE) battery membranes without any hydrophilic modification were directly used to prepare PE-RO membranes. The structures of the products were confirmed via attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy. The resulting RO membrane prepared with 0.05 wt.% of trimesoyl chloride and 2 wt.% of m-phenylenediamine exhibited a water flux of 12.61 L m−2 h−1 with a desalination (NaCl) rate of 98.6%. The thickness of the PE-RO membrane is 80% of the thickness of the traditional RO membranes and hence has a wider application as a separation membrane. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]