Increasing evidence suggests that the failure of clinical antidepressants may be related with neuroinflammation. The NOD-, LRR- and pyrin domain-containing protein 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome is an ...intracellular multiprotein complex, and has been considered as a key contributor to the development of neuroinflammation. Inhibition of NLRP3 inflammasome is an effective method for depression treatment. In this review, we summarized current researches highlighting the role of NLRP3 inflammasome in the pathology of depression. Firstly, we discussed NLRP3 inflammasome activation in patients with depression and animal models. Secondly, we outlined the possible mechanisms driving the activation of NLRP3 inflammasome. Thirdly, we discussed the pathogenetic role of NLRP3 inflammasome in depression. Finally, we overviewed the current and potential antidepressants targeting the NLRP3 inflammasome. Overall, the inhibition of NLRP3 inflammasome activation may be a potential therapeutic strategy for inflammation-related depression.
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Rationale
The decrease of astrocyte number and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis overactivity are observed in individuals with major depressive disorder. Elevated levels of glucocorticoids ...induced by hyperactivation of the HPA axis may result in glucocorticoid receptor (GR) activation. However, it is unclear whether there is a direct link between GR activation and the decrease of astrocyte number.
Methods
Animals were exposed to chronic unpredictable stress (CUS) for 28 days and treated with continuous subcutaneous injections of vehicle or corticosterone (CORT; 40 mg/kg/day) for 21 days. We then administered mifepristone on day 21 after CUS and on day 18 after the CORT treatment. We observed behavioral deficits in the sucrose preference test, open field test, and forced swim test. Protein expression was analyzed using immunofluorescence (IF) and western blot (WB).
Results
Animals exposed to CUS exhibited behavioral deficits in tests measuring anhedonia, anxiety, and despair state. They also had decreases in glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) expression and numbers of GFAP-positive cells in the hippocampus. The behavioral and cellular alterations induced by CUS were reversed by subchronic treatment with the GR antagonist mifepristone. We also found that the subcutaneous injection of glucocorticoids may induce depression-like behavior and reduce GFAP protein expression in rats, which was similarly reversed by mifepristone.
Conclusions
These findings provide experimental evidence that GR activation due to elevated CORT levels induces the decrease of hippocampal astrocyte number in rats.
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•First study on identification of autotrophic denitrifying communities by DNA-SIP.•High efficient NO3−-N, TN removals from organic-free influent based on CEAD process.•Strongly ...labeled nirS gene indicating H13CO3− assimilated by autotrophic denitrifiers.•Thiobacillus was the most dominant autotrophic denitrifiers though sulfur was absent.
Autotrophic denitrification has attracted increasing attention for wastewater with insufficient organic carbon sources. Nevertheless, in situ identification of autotrophic denitrifying communities in reactors remains challenging. Here, a process combining micro-electrolysis and autotrophic denitrification with high nitrate removal efficiency was presented. Two batch reactors were fed organic-free nitrate influent, with H13CO3− and H12CO3− as inorganic carbon sources. DNA-based stable-isotope probing (DNA-SIP) was used to obtain molecular evidence for autotrophic denitrifying communities. The results showed that the nirS gene was strongly labeled by H13CO3−, demonstrating that the inorganic carbon source was assimilated by autotrophic denitrifiers. High-throughput sequencing and clone library analysis identified Thiobacillus-like bacteria as the most dominant autotrophic denitrifiers. However, 88% of nirS genes cloned from the 13C-labeled “heavy” DNA fraction showed low similarity with all culturable denitrifiers. These findings provided functional and taxonomical identification of autotrophic denitrifying communities, facilitating application of autotrophic denitrification process for wastewater treatment.
Dynamic modulation of soft helix in terms of the molecular organization, handedness, and pitch length could result in a sophisticated control over its functions, opening numerous possibilities toward ...the exploration of previously unidentified applications. Here, we report a dynamic and reversible transformation of a soft helical superstructure among the helicoidal (molecules orthogonal to helical axis), heliconical (molecules oblique to the helical axis, i.e., oblique helicoidal), and their inverse helices, together with a tunability on the helical pitch, by combining electrical and optical manipulations. This multistate transformation depends on a matching of the temperature, the strength of external stimuli, and the bend and twist elastic effects of the system. A laser emission with tunable wavelength and polarization, and prescribed micropatterns formed by any aforementioned architectures were achieved.
Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a chronic endocrine disease resulted from insulin secretory defect or insulin resistance and it is a leading cause of death around the world. The care of DM patients ...consumes a huge budget due to the high frequency of consultations and long hospitalizations, making DM a serious threat to both human health and global economies. Tea contains abundant polyphenols and caffeine which showed antidiabetic activity, so the development of antidiabetic medications from tea and its extracts is increasingly receiving attention. However, the results claiming an association between tea consumption and reduced DM risk are inconsistent. The advances in the epidemiologic evidence and the underlying antidiabetic mechanisms of tea are reviewed in this paper. The inconsistent results and the possible causes behind them are also discussed.
The orbital angular momentum (OAM) of light has been shown to be useful in diverse fields ranging from astronomy and optical trapping to optical communications and data storage. However, one of the ...primary impediments preventing such applications from widespread adoption is the lack of a straightforward and dynamic method to sort incident OAM states without altering the states. Here, we report a technique that can dynamically filter individual OAM states and preserve the incident OAM states for subsequent processing. Although the working principle of this technique is based on resonance, the device operation is not limited to a particular wavelength. OAM states with different wavelengths can resonate in the resonator without any additional modulation other than changing the length of the cavity. Consequently, we are able to demonstrate a reconfigurable OAM sorter that is constructed by cascading such optical resonators. This approach does not require specially designed components and is readily amenable to integration into potential applications.
The smart energy absorption and storage properties make the phase change materials the ideal candidate for solar thermal conversion and afterheat utilization. Applying the vane extruder (VE) coupled ...with a single-layer blown film die, a fast and efficient one-step method is proposed for the successive and mass production of LDPE/PEO/CNTs (PPCs) nanocomposite films. Benefiting from the volumetric elongational flow field provided by the VE, the CNTs are uniformly dispersed in the matrix and a co-continuous network is formed, thereby the thermal conductivity and tensile strength of the PPCs film are effectively improved. The melting enthalpy of PPC0.02 film is 110 J g−1 and tensile strength is 3.308 MPa. Furthermore, the PPCs films maintain stable phase change temperature and robust chemical properties after 150 thermal cycles. The temperature of the simulated greenhouse can be controlled within the range that is conducive to crop growth when the PPCs film is applied to its roof. This can be ascribed to the sufficient light-to-thermal conversion capability and thermal conductivity of the PPCs film. The PPCs film with sufficient shape stability and leakage resistance can be an excellent candidate for harvesting and recycling solar and heat energy sources.
A fast and efficient one-step method is proposed for the successive and mass production of LDPE/PEO/CNTs (PPCs) nanocomposite film though the vane extruder coupled with a single-layer blown film dies. The prepared PPCs films have excellent encapsulation property mechanical, strength, light-to-thermal and thermal management property. Display omitted
•An efficient method is proposed for the preparation of LDPE/PEO/CNTs films.•The property of the film is improved under the volumetric extensional rheology.•The prepared film exhibits robust chemical stability after 150 thermal cycles.
The genus Stellera Linn. consists of species of perennial herbs and shrubs, and is mainly distributed in the temperate regions of east Asia to west Asia. There are 10∼12 species in the world, two ...species in China: Stellera chamaejasme Linn. and Stellera formosana Hayata ex Li. As recorded, the roots of Stellera species are used to dissipate phlegm and relieve pain. The roots and the barks can be used for papermaking.
This review aims to summarize the ethnopharmacological uses, chemical constituents, pharmacological activities, clinical applications and toxicology of the genus Stellera to better understand their therapeutic potential in the future.
The relevant information of the genus Stellera was collected from scientific databases (Pubmed, ACS website, SciFinder Scholar, Elsevier, Google Scholar, Web of Science and CNKI). Information was also gathered from 'Flora Republicae Popularis Sinicae (〈〈中国植物志〉〉)', folk records, conference papers on ethnopharmacology, Ph.D. and Masters′ Dissertation.
Stellera plants have been studied as traditional folk medicines all around the world. The chemical constituents of Stellera species mainly comprise terpenoids, flavonoids, coumarins, lignans, and so on. Extracts and compounds of Stellera species exhibit extensive pharmacological activities, such as anti-tumor, anti-viral, anti-convulsive, anti-epileptic, anti-bacterial and anti-insect activities, etc. Clinical applications have suggested that the genus Stellera has the effects in treating several skin diseases and cancers, however, the results should be further verification. The genus Stellera plants are toxic and should be used reasonable.
This paper reviewed the ethnopharmacological uses, chemical constituents, pharmacology, clinical applications and toxicology of the genus Stellera. The genus Stellera has broad application prospects. However, further in-depth studies are needed to determine the medical uses of the genus and its chemical constituents, pharmacological activities, clinical applications and toxicology.
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Increasing evidence has implicated astrocyte pathology in the etiopathology of major depressive disorder (MDD). In particular, dysfunction of gap junctions in astrocytes is a potential target for MDD ...treatment. However, the mechanism underlying stress-induced dysfunction of gap junctions is still unknown. We therefore studied the mechanism of stress-induced dysfunction of gap junctions in prefrontal cortical and hippocampal astrocytes. Corticosterone (CORT) was used to induce stress conditions; CORT damaged the function of gap junctions, which resulted from less distribution of connexin43 (Cx43) on membranes and the enhanced phosphorylation of Cx43 at S368. Moreover, CORT downregulated the biosynthesis of Cx43 but increased the degradation of Cx43. Interestingly, both autophagy and the proteasome system were involved in the degradation of Cx43 in prefrontal cortical astrocytes, but only the proteasome system was involved in the degradation of Cx43 in hippocampal astrocytes. CORT significantly induced the formation of annular gap junction vesicles in prefrontal cortical astrocytes; however, Cx43 mainly presented as small dots in the hippocampal astrocytes. Furthermore, CORT increased N-Cadherin expression and the interactions of Cx43 with ZO-1/drebrin in prefrontal cortical astrocytes, but these interactions were oppositely modulated in hippocampal astrocytes. In conclusion, this study clarified the alternations of the Cx43 life cycle in the prefrontal cortical and hippocampal astrocytes exposed to CORT, which may contribute to our understanding of the mechanisms underlying stress-induced dysfunction of gap junctions.
•Gap junction dysfunction in astrocytes is a potential target for MDD treatment.•The mechanism of stress-induced dysfunction of gap junctions was studied.•Corticosterone (CORT) was used to mimic aspects of stress conditions in astrocytes.•CORT induced gap junctions dysfunction by regulating Cx43 life cycle.
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