Phytic acid, which is a naturally occurring component that is widely found in many plants, can strongly bond toxic mineral elements in the human body, because of its six phosphate groups. Some of the ...metal ions present the property of bonding with phytic acid to form insoluble coordination complexes aggregations, even at room temperature. Herein, a superhydrophobic cotton fabric was prepared using a novel and facile nature-inspired strategy that introduced phytic acid metal complex aggregations to generate rough hierarchical structures on a fabric surface, followed by PDMS modification. This superhydrophobic surface can be constructed not only on cotton fabric, but also on filter paper, polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fabric, and sponge. AgI, FeIII, CeIII, ZrIV, and SnIV are very commendatory ions in our study. Taking phytic acid–FeIII-based superhydrophobic fabric as an example, it showed excellent resistance to ultraviolet (UV) irradiation, high temperature, and organic solvent immersion, and it has good resistance to mechanical wear and abrasion. The superhydrophobic/superoleophilic fabric was successfully used to separate oil/water mixtures with separation efficiencies as high as 99.5%. We envision that these superantiwetting fabrics, modified with phytic acid–metal complexes and PDMS, are environmentally friendly, low cost, sustainable, and easy to scale up, and thereby exhibit great potentials in practical applications.
Brown macroalgae are an important source of polyphenols with multiple health functions. In this work, polyphenol extracts from Lessonia trabeculate were purified and investigated for the antidiabetic ...activity in vitro and in vivo. The purified polyphenol extracts exhibited good antioxidant activities, α-glucosidase and lipase inhibition activities (IC50 < 0.25 mg/mL). The HPLC-DAD-ESI-MS/MS analysis indicated that the compounds in polyphenol extracts were mainly phlorotannin derivatives, phenolic acid derivatives, and gallocatechin derivatives. In vivo, C57BL/6J rats treated with polyphenol extracts for 4 weeks had lower fasting blood glucose levels, insulin levels, as well as better serum lipid profiles and antioxidant stress parameters, compared with the diabetic control (DC) group. Histopathology revealed that polyphenol extracts preserved the architecture and function of the liver. Short-chain fatty acid contents in rats’ fecal samples with polyphenols administration were significantly recovered as compared with the DC group. Furthermore, the gut microflora of rats was investigated with high-throughput 16S rRNA gene sequencing and results indicated that polyphenol extracts had a positive effect on regulating the dysbiosis of the microbial ecology in diabetic rats. All of the results from the study provided a scientific reference of the potentially beneficial effects of L. trabeculate polyphenols on diabetes management.
Polysaccharide-rich extracts from Apocynum venetum leaves have beneficial effects on management of type 2 diabetes by attenuating hypoglycemic and modulating gut microbiota in mice.
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...•Polysaccharide-rich extracts from Apocynum venetum leaves were obtained.•Polysaccharide extracts had significant anti-hypoglycemic effects in diabetes rats.•Polysaccharide extracts could modulate the gut microbiota in diabetes rats.•Polysaccharide extracts may be used as prebiotics for management of type 2 diabetes.
Diabetes is one of the most concerned metabolic diseases worldwide and threaten public health. In the present work, two polysaccharide-rich extracts from Apocynum venetum leaves were extracted using distilled water and alkaline solution (0.05 M NaOH), and fully characterized. Hypoglycemic and hypolipidemic effects of two polysaccharide-rich extracts on high-fat diet and streptozocin-induced type 2 diabetic mice were investigated. Treatment of alkaline extracted polysaccharide-rich products significantly decreased the levels of fasting blood glucose, serum insulin, glycated serum protein, as well as serum lipids profiles including total cholesterol, triacylglycerols, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and nonesterified fatty acid. Meanwhile, the reduced glycogen contents in liver were prominently improved, and the oxidative damage were markedly ameliorated by alkaline extracted polysaccharide products in diabetic mice. Furthermore, both polysaccharide-rich extracts could reverse the gut microbiota dysbiosis in diabetic mice by increasing the abundance of genera Odoribacter, Anaeroplasma, Parasutterella, and Muribaculum; while by decreasing the abundance of genera Enterococcus, Klebsiella, and Aerococcus. This study provides new sights for exploitation of Apocynum venetum extracts as a promising anti-diabetic nutraceutical for the treatment of type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome.
Abstract
Dimethylsulfoniopropionate (DMSP) is an important marine osmolyte. Aphotic environments are only recently being considered as potential contributors to global DMSP production. Here, ...our Mariana Trench study reveals a typical seawater DMSP/dimethylsulfide (DMS) profile, with highest concentrations in the euphotic zone and decreased but consistent levels below. The genetic potential for bacterial DMSP synthesis via the
dsyB
gene and its transcription is greater in the deep ocean, and is highest in the sediment.s DMSP catabolic potential is present throughout the trench waters, but is less prominent below 8000 m, perhaps indicating a preference to store DMSP in the deep for stress protection. Deep ocean bacterial isolates show enhanced DMSP production under increased hydrostatic pressure. Furthermore, bacterial
dsyB
mutants are less tolerant of deep ocean pressures than wild-type strains. Thus, we propose a physiological function for DMSP in hydrostatic pressure protection, and that bacteria are key DMSP producers in deep seawater and sediment.
5-Methylcytosine (m
C) is a posttranscriptional RNA modification participating in many critical bioprocesses, but its functions in human cancer remain unclear. Here, by detecting the ...transcriptome-wide m
C profiling in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), we showed increased m
C methylation in ESCC tumors due to the overexpressed m
C methyltransferase NSUN2. Aberrant expression of NSUN2 was positively regulated by E2F Transcription Factor 1 (E2F1). High NSUN2 levels predicted poor survival of ESCC patients. Moreover, silencing NSUN2 suppressed ESCC tumorigenesis and progression in Nsun2 knockout mouse models. Mechanistically, NSUN2 induced m
C modification of growth factor receptor-bound protein 2 (GRB2) and stabilized its mRNA, which was mediated by a novel m
C mediator, protein lin-28 homolog B (LIN28B). Elevated GRB2 levels increased the activation of PI3K/AKT and ERK/MAPK signalling. These results demonstrate that NSUN2 enhances the initiation and progression of ESCC via m
C-LIN28B dependent stabilization of GRB2 transcript, providing a promising epitranscriptomic-targeted therapeutic strategy for ESCC.
The molecular mechanism underlying pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) malignancy remains unclear. Here, we characterize a long intergenic non-coding RNA LINC00842 that plays a role in PDAC ...progression. LINC00842 expression is upregulated in PDAC and induced by high concentration of glucose via transcription factor YY1. LINC00842 binds to and prevents acetylated PGC-1α from deacetylation by deacetylase SIRT1 to form PGC-1α, an important transcription co-factor in regulating cellular metabolism. LINC00842 overexpression causes metabolic switch from mitochondrial oxidative catabolic process to fatty acid synthesis, enhancing the malignant phenotypes of PDAC cells. High LINC00842 levels are correlated with elevated acetylated- PGC-1α levels in PDAC and poor patient survival. Decreasing LINC00842 level and inhibiting fatty acid synthase activity significantly repress PDAC growth and invasiveness in mouse pancreatic xenograft or patient-derived xenograft models. These results demonstrate that LINC00842 plays a role in promoting PDAC malignancy and thus might serve as a druggable target.
Breast cancer is one of the most common malignancies and the major cause of cancer-related death in women. Although the importance of PIWI-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) in cancer has been increasingly ...recognized, few studies have been explored the functional mechanism of piRNAs in breast cancer development and progression.
We examined the top 20 highly expressed piRNAs based on the analysis of TCGA breast cancer data in two patient cohorts to test the roles of piRNAs in breast cancer. The effects of piRNA-36,712 on the malignant phenotypes and chemosensitivity of breast cancer cells were detected in vitro and in vivo. MS2-RIP and reporter gene assays were conducted to identify the interaction and regulation among piRNA-36,712, miRNAs and SEPW1P. Kaplan-Meier estimate with log-rank test was used to compare patient survival by different piRNA-36,712 expression levels.
We found piRNA-36,712 level was significantly lower in breast cancer than in normal breast tissues and low level was correlated with poor clinical outcome in patients. Functional studies demonstrated that piRNA-36,712 interacts with RNAs produced by SEPW1P, a retroprocessed pseudogene of SEPW1, and subsequently inhibits SEPW1 expression through competition of SEPW1 mRNA with SEPW1P RNA for microRNA-7 and microRNA-324. We also found that higher SEPW1 expression due to downregulation of piRNA-36,712 in breast cancer may suppress P53, leading to the upregulated Slug but decreased P21 and E-cadherin levels, thus promoting cancer cell proliferation, invasion and migration. Furthermore, we found that piRNA-36,712 had synergistic anticancer effects with the paclitaxel and doxorubicin, two chemotherapeutic agents for breast cancer.
These findings suggest that piRNA-36,712 is a novel tumor suppressor and may serve as a potential predictor for the prognosis of breast cancer patients.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
There is increasing evidence that root exudates play important roles in plant disease resistance. Black shank, caused by
Phytophthora nicotianae
, is a destructive soil-borne disease in tobacco (
...Nicotiana tabacum
L.). The aim of the present study was to investigate the activity and composition of the root exudates from resistant and susceptible tobacco cultivars. The root exudates of the resistant cultivar Gexin 3 showed inhibitory activity against
P. nicotianae
, while the exudates of susceptible cultivar Xiaohuangjin 1025 stimulated the colony growth but had no effect on spore germination. Metabolic profiling using liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization-quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometry depicted differing metabolic patterns of root exudates between Gexin 3 and Xiaohuangjin 1025. The activity and composition of root exudates was altered by
P. nicotianae
inoculation. Multivariate analysis showed that root exudates (including organic acids, alkaloids, fatty acids, and esters) were different between the two varieties. The defense substances in root exudates, such as tartaric acid, ferulic acid, and lauric acid, may represent a pre-infection prevention strategy for tobacco. Phenylpropanoids as well as inducers of salicylic acid, fatty acids, 6-hydroxyhexanoic acid, and hydrojasmonate may be involved in tobacco defense responses. Compared to the susceptible cultivar, the roots of the resistant cultivar exhibited high enzyme activities of phenylalanine ammonia-lyase, cinnamate-4-hydroxylase and 4-coumarate-CoA ligase, which may prompt the synthesis and secretion of phenylpropanoids. Our results indicated that the root exudates not only provide a pre-infection prevention strategy by exuding antimicrobial substances, but also increase tobacco disease resistance by eliciting plant defense responses. In addition, some defense compounds as well as compounds that play a role in inducing plant defense responses, showed potential for disease control application. This study provides an insight into possible disease resistance mechanisms of root exudates, and attempts the beneficial utilization of these secondary metabolites of plants.
Abstract
Pseudogenes may play important roles in cancer. Here, we explore the mechanism and function of a pseudogene WTAPP1 in the progress of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). WTAPP1 RNA was ...significantly elevated in PDAC and was associated with poor prognosis in patients. Overexpression of WTAPP1 RNA promoted PDAC proliferation and invasiveness in vitro and in vivo. Mechanistically, N6-methyladenosine (m6A) modification stabilized WTAPP1 RNA via CCHC-type zinc finger nucleic-acid binding protein (CNBP), resulting in increased levels of WTAPP1 RNA in PDAC cells. Excessive WTAPP1 RNA bound its protein-coding counterpart WT1-associated protein (WTAP) mRNA and recruited more EIF3 translation initiation complex to promote WTAP translation. Increased WTAP protein enhanced the activation of Wnt signaling and provoked the malignant phenotypes of PDAC. Decreasing WTAPP1 RNA significantly suppressed the in vivo growth and metastasis of PDAC cell lines and patient-derived xenografts. These results indicate that m6A-mediated increases in WTAPP1 expression promote PDAC progression and thus may serve as a therapeutic target.
Significance:
This study reveals how aberrant m6A modification of the WTAPP1 pseudogene results in increased translation of its protein-coding counterpart to promote Wnt signaling, which contributes to pancreatic cancer progression.
Microbial production and catabolism of dimethylsulfoniopropionate (DMSP), generating the climatically active gases dimethyl sulfide (DMS) and methanethiol (MeSH), have key roles in global carbon and ...sulfur cycling, chemotaxis, and atmospheric chemistry. Microorganisms in the sea surface microlayer (SML), the interface between seawater and atmosphere, likely play an important role in the generation of DMS and MeSH and their exchange to the atmosphere, but little is known about these SML microorganisms. Here, we investigated the differences between bacterial community structure and the distribution and transcription profiles of the key bacterial DMSP synthesis (dsyB and mmtN) and catabolic (dmdA and dddP) genes in East China Sea SML and subsurface seawater (SSW) samples. Per equivalent volume, bacteria were far more abundant (~ 7.5-fold) in SML than SSW, as were those genera predicted to produce DMSP. Indeed, dsyB (~ 7-fold) and mmtN (~ 4-fold), robust reporters for bacterial DMSP production, were also far more abundant in SML than SSW. In addition, the SML had higher dsyB transcripts (~ 3-fold) than SSW samples, which may contribute to the significantly higher DMSP level observed in SML compared with SSW. Furthermore, the abundance of bacteria with dmdA and their transcription were higher in SML than SSW samples. Bacteria with dddP and transcripts were also prominent, but less than dmdA and presented at similar levels in both layers. These data indicate that the SML might be an important hotspot for bacterial DMSP production as well as generating the climatically active gases DMS and MeSH, a portion of which are likely transferred to the atmosphere.
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