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Blueberries contain a variety of physiologically active compounds with strong antioxidant properties and health benefits. However, fresh blueberries are perishable, which seriously hinders the development of blueberry industry. In order to prolong the shelf life of blueberry, many researchers have conducted detailed studies on blueberry preservation technologies. In this paper, the types of blueberry postharvest diseases were firstly described. The research progress on the preservation technology of blueberry was reviewed from three aspects: physical preservation, chemical preservation and biological preservation, which is expected to provide a foundation for further research on blueberry preservation technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The total flavones of Abelmoschus manihot (TFA), a compound that is extracted from Abelmoschus manihot , has been widely used in China to reduce podocyte injury in diabetic kidney disease (DKD). However, the mechanisms underlying the therapeutic action of this compound have yet to be elucidated. Podocyte pyroptosis is characterized by activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome and plays an important role in inflammation-mediated diabetic kidneys. Regulation of the PTEN/PI3K/Akt pathway is an effective strategy for improving podocyte damage in DKD. Previous research has also shown that N6-methyladenosine (m6A) modification is involved in DKD and that m6A-modified PTEN regulates the PI3K/Akt pathway. In this study, we investigated whether TFA alleviates podocyte pyroptosis and injury by targeting m6A modification-mediated NLRP3-inflammasome activation and PTEN/PI3K/Akt signaling. Methods: We used MPC-5 cells under high glucose (HG) conditions to investigate the key molecules that are involved in podocyte pyroptosis and injury, including activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome and the PTEN/PI3K/Akt pathway. We detected alterations in the levels of three methyltransferases that are involved in m6A modification. We also investigated changes in the levels of these key molecules in podocytes with the overexpression or knockdown of methyltransferase-like (METTL)3. Results: Analysis showed that TFA and MCC950 protected podocytes against HG-induced pyroptosis and injury by reducing the protein expression levels of gasdermin D, interleukin-1β, and interleukin-18, and by increasing the protein expression levels of nephrin, ZO-1, WT1 and podocalyxin. TFA and 740Y-P inhibited activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome via the PI3K/Akt pathway by inhibiting the protein levels of NIMA-related kinase7, NLRP3, ASC, and caspase-1, and by increasing the protein expression levels of p-PI3K and p-Akt. TFA improved pyroptosis and injury in HG-stimulated podocytes by regulating METTL3-dependent m6A modification. Conclusion: Collectively, our data indicated that TFA could ameliorate pyroptosis and injury in podocytes under HG conditions by adjusting METTL3-dependent m6A modification and regulating NLRP3-inflammasome activation and PTEN/PI3K/Akt signaling. This study provides a better understanding of how TFA can protect podocytes in DKD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graphical abstract Highlights • Anataxis of the Grt-bearing biotite gneiss was identified in the Jianggalesayi area. • Protolith, peak & retrograded metamorphic, anatectic ages were obtained for the gneiss. • Protolith ages of 1099–1072 Ma and formation age of 417 Ma were for the felsic veins. • Biotite dehydration accounted for the anatexis of the gneiss between 456 and 417 Ma. • Crystallization of the melt took place at the amphibolite facies stage of the gneiss. Abstract Partial melting of the garnet (Grt)–bearing biotite gneiss from the Jianggalesayi area in the southern Altyn Tagh high pressure (HP) – ultra high pressure (UHP) metamorphic belt has been identified and reported here. Felsic veins were distributed along the foliation plane and deformed together with the Grt–bearing biotite gneiss, which dominated the main outcrop and preserved diagnostic features of anataxis. Highly cuspate and irregular quartz (Qz)-melt and plagioclase (Pl)-melt surrounded or stretched into biotite and/or quartz grains with obvious eroded boundaries further provided the microstructural evidences for partial melting of the gneiss. CL images showed that zircons from the Grt–bearing biotite gneiss were characterized by multizone structures of core – Rim I – Rim II – Rim III. The different zircon zones from the gneiss had integrated recordings of the protolith ages 836–1613 Ma; the peak metamorphic age of 503 ± 5 Ma; the retrograded age of 456 ± 4 Ma; and the anatectic age of 418 ± 3 Ma. Zircons from felsic veins also exhibited core – rim structures on CL images. The felsic veins yielded similar protolith ages (1099–1072 Ma) and anatectic age (417 ± 2 Ma) as the host gneiss. The zircons from the host gneiss and felsic veins had plotted identical crustal evolution curves in the εHf(t) vs. U-Pb age diagram with identical T DM ages. The U-Pb ages and Lu-Hf isotope both suggested that the felsic veins were internally derived by the partial melting of the host gneiss. Moreover, the high content of Al 2 O 3 and Rb in felsic veins indicated that the decomposition of biotite accounted for the partial melting of the gneiss. The temperatures calculated by Ti–in–zircon thermometer for the anatectic zircons from the felsic veins (582–694 °C) were identical to the conditions of the amphibolite facies stage of the Grt–bearing biotite gneiss (T = 619–646 °C), which indicated that the crystallization of the melt had taken place during the amphibolite facies stage of the exhumation. The anatectic ages (418 ± 3 Ma and 417 ± 2 Ma) of the gneiss and felsic veins were determined to be within the range of the fourth episode of the early Paleozoic magmatism (420–385 Ma), which had formed in a post-collisional extensional setting. Therefore, the combination of the magmatic heat events and stress release may have played an important role in the partial melting of the gneiss. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to establish and validate a poroelastic L4-L5 finite element model to evaluate the effect of different sitting postures and their durations on the mechanical responses of the disc. During the sustained loading conditions, the height loss, fluid loss and von-Mises stress gradually increased, but the intradiscal pressure decreased. The varying rates of aforementioned parameters were more significant at the initial loading stage and less so at the end. The predicted values in the flexed sitting posture were significantly greater than other postures. The extended sitting posture caused an obvious von-Mises stress concentration in the posterior region of the inter-lamellar matrix. From the biomechanical perspective, prolonged sitting may pose a high risk of lumbar disc degeneration, and therefore adjusting the posture properly in the early stage of sitting time may be useful to mitigate that. Additionally, upright sitting is a safer posture, while flexed sitting posture is more harmful.