Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is one of the most prevalent endocrine diseases in the world. Recent studies have shown that dysbiosis of the gut microbiota may be an important contributor to T2DM ...pathogenesis. However, the mechanisms underlying the roles of the gut microbiome and fecal metabolome in T2DM have not been characterized. Recently, the Goto-Kakizaki (GK) rat model of T2DM was developed to study the clinical symptoms and characteristics of human T2DM. To further characterize T2DM pathogenesis, we combined multi-omics techniques, including 16S rRNA gene sequencing, metagenomic sequencing, and metabolomics, to analyze gut microbial compositions and functions, and further characterize fecal metabolomic profiles in GK rats. Our results showed that gut microbial compositions were significantly altered in GK rats, as evidenced by reduced microbial diversity, altered microbial taxa distribution, and alterations in the interaction network of the gut microbiome. Functional analysis based on the cluster of orthologous groups (COG) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) annotations suggested that 5 functional COG categories belonged to the metabolism cluster and 33 KEGG pathways related to metabolic pathways were significantly enriched in GK rats. Metabolomics profiling identified 53 significantly differentially abundant metabolites in GK rats, including lipids and lipid-like molecules. These lipids were enriched in the glycerophospholipid metabolic pathway. Moreover, functional correlation analysis showed that some altered gut microbiota families, such as
and
, significantly correlated with alterations in fecal metabolites. Collectively, the results suggested that an altered gut microbiota is associated with T2DM pathogenesis.
In this work, we reviewed the progress in the phytochemical and biological investigations of bioactive components derived from medicinally valuable
species. In the last 60 years,
has garnered ...significant attention from the phytochemist from around the world, majorly due to the discovery of bioactive piperidine alkaloids (e.g., lobinaline and lobeline) in the early 1950s. Later, lobeline underwent clinical trials for several indications including the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and a multicenter phase three trial for smoking cessation. Subsequently, several other alkaloids derived from different species of
were also investigated for their pharmacological characteristics. However, in the last few years, the research focus has started shifting to the characterization of the other novel chemical classes. The major shift has been noticed due to the structurally similar alkaloid components, which essentially share similar pharmacological, physicochemical, and toxicological profiles. In this review, we present an up-to-date overview of their progress with special attention to understanding the molecular mechanisms of the novel bioactive components.
The sweet rhizomes of
are widely used as a tonic and functional food. A sensitive and rapid analytical method was developed for simultaneous identification and dynamic analysis of saccharides during ...steam processing in
using HPLC⁻QTOF⁻MS/MS. Fructose, sorbitol, glucose, galactose, sucrose, and 1-kestose were identified, as well as a large number of oligosaccharides constituted of fructose units through β-(2→1) or β-(2→6). Polysaccharides and oligosaccharides were decomposed to monosaccharides during a steaming process, since the contents of glucose, galactose, and fructose were increased, while those of sucrose, 1-kestose, and polysaccharides were decreased. The high content of fructose was revealed to be the main determinant for increasing the level of sweetness after steaming. The samples of different repeated steaming times were shown to be well grouped and gradually shift along the PC1 (72.4%) axis by principal component analysis. The small-molecule saccharides, especially fructose, could be considered as markers for the steaming process of rhizomes of
.
Neuronal-regulated cell death (RCD) due to the accumulation of ROS within the central nervous system (CNS) is one of the crucial causes of central system diseases. Caspase-dependent apoptosis is the ...only form of RCD. As research progressed, several nonapoptotic cell death pathway RCDs were identified. Ferroptosis is a nonapoptotic RCD characterized by lipid peroxidation and plasma membrane damage. Polygonatum cyrtonema Hua. Polysaccharides (PCP) are an effective antioxidant. Based on this, the protective effect and mechanism of PCP against H2O2-induced microglial injury were investigated. Furthermore, the protective mechanism of PCP against ferroptosis in microglia was explored. Our results indicated that PCP could reduce oxidative stress-induced ROS accumulation by activating the NRF2/HO-1 signaling pathway, thus attenuating RCD in microglia. Subsequent studies have revealed that PCP alleviates ferroptosis in microglia due to protein levels of ERASTIN/RSL3 inhibitor SLC7A11/GPX4 by activating the NRF2/HO-1 signaling pathway. Therefore, we hypothesized that PCP exerts antioxidative and anti-ferroptosis effects by activating the expression of the NRF2/HO-1 pathway. This facilitates new ideas for clinically effective prevention and treatment of diseases due to accumulated reactive oxygen species in the CNS. Simultaneously, PCP has the development potential as a new drug candidate for treating CNS diseases.
Poria cocos
is an important edible and medicinal fungus with a long history. However, the lack of adequate genetic tools has hindered molecular genetic research and the genetic modification of this ...species. In this study, the endogenous U6 promoters were identified by mining data from the
P. cocos
genome, and the promoter sequence was used to construct a sgRNA expression vector pFC332-PcU6. Then, the protoplast isolation protocol was developed, and the sgRNA-Cas9 vector was successfully transformed into the cells of
P. cocos via
PEG/CaCl2-mediated transformation approach. Off-target sites were genome-widely predicted and detected. As a result, the target marker gene
ura3
was successfully disrupted by the CRISPR-Cas9 system. This is the first report of genome editing in
P. cocos
using CRISPR-Cas9 system integrating genome-wide off-target prediction and detection. These data will open up new avenues for the investigation of genetic breeding and commercial production of edible and medicinal fungus.
As an edible sclerotia-forming fungus,
is widely used as a food supplement and as a tonic in China. High-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole/time-of-flight mass spectrometry ...(HPLC-QTOF-MS/MS) was applied to identify triterpene acids in fermented mycelia of
, as well as the epidermis and inner part of natural sclerotia. A total of 19 triterpene acids were identified in fermented mycelia, whereas 31 were identified in the epidermis and 24 in the inner part. Nine triterpene acids were quantitatively determined, and the concentrations of two valuable triterpenes, dehydropachymic acid and pachymic acid, reached 1.07 mg/g and 0.61 mg/g in the fermented mycelia part, respectively, and were both significantly higher than the concentration in the two natural parts. The fermented mycelia could be a good choice for producing some target triterpene compounds and functional foods through fermentation thanks to the high concentration of some triterpene acids.
The gut microbiota (GM) is involved in the metabolism of glycosides and is beneficial for enhancing their bioactivity. However, the metabolism of multi-glycosides by the GM under normal and ...pathological conditions is unclear. In this study, the total glycosides (TG) of the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) formula Qiwei Baizhu Powder (QWBZP) were extracted to represent a multi-glycoside system. Ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS) was used to rapidly identify the components and
in vitro
metabolites of QWBZP-TG. The metabolic profiles of QWBZP-TG in the GM of normal and diarrheal mice were also compared. A total of 68 compounds and seven metabolites were identified in the QWBZP-TG and metabolic samples, respectively. Deglycosylation was the main metabolic pathway of
in vitro
multi-glycoside metabolism. Liquiritin apioside, isoliquiritin apioside, liquiritin, protopanaxadiol (PPD)-type, and oleanane (OLE)-type ginsenosides were relatively easy to metabolize by the GM. At first, the deglycosylation capability of the GM of normal mice was superior to that of diarrheal mice, but the deglycosylation capability of diarrheal mice gradually recovered and produced abundant deglycosylation metabolites. In conclusion, deglycosylation metabolites may be the bioactive components of QWBZP. Glycoside-bacteria interaction may be a key mechanism for QWBZP to therapy diarrhea.
The Yao ethnic group in Xuefeng Mountains area have used Xuefeng cordyceps, the caterpillar–fungus complex of Ophiocordyceps xuefengensis, for treating a variety of diseases for long. Just like some ...other cordyceps, O. xuefengensis, which is identified as the sister taxon of O. sinensis in 2013, also seems to have broad pharmacological properties, not only enhancing human immunity, anti–bacteria, anti–virus, but also anti–tumor. However, investigation of the medicinal fugal species O. xuefengensis can be found only in few literature records since its pharmacological and therapeutic use is mainly in traditional Yao communities by local healers.
The aim of this study is to collect samples of Xuefeng cordyceps and isolate the strain of O. xuefengensis, to determine bioactive components and evaluate the anti-tumor activity, to obtain the gene expression profile of O. xuefengensis and reveal its pharmacological properties by de novo transcriptome analysis. Accordingly, we attempt to provide information and give a comprehensive understanding of this mysterious medicinal fugal species from traditional Yao communities of China.
Bioactive components were determined with HPLC–DAD–Q–TOF–MS technology; in vitro anti–tumor activity against 6 cell lines was evaluated using standard MTT assay; transcriptome analysis was done by de novo sequencing; unique genes were functionally profiled basing on Gene Ontology Database and the targeted genes were examined by blast.
Trace cordycepin, an anti–tumor agent, was detected in O. xuefengensis water extract. To some extent, the raw water extract of O. xuefengensis showed in vitro anti–tumor activity, against A549, HepG2, MCF–7, PC–3 and Raji cell lines. A total of 94,858 transcripts and 49,001 unique genes were obtained, amongst, 43.4% unique genes were matched with those of O. sinensis. Not all supposed genes related to cordycepin biosynthetic pathways were found by transcriptome analysis.
According to the gene expression profile, O. xuefengensis is very close to medicinal fungus O. sinensis. Raw water extract of O. xuefengensis, to a certain degree, could inhibit the growth of tumor cells, indicating that this fungus could be a new resource for the exploration of anti–tumor drug.
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Ophiocordyceps xuefengensis is an ethnopharmacological fungus with broad pharmacological properties. Light is a critical environmental factor for the stromata formation and development of many fungi. ...In this study, photomorphogenesis and blue light receptor genes were studied using a strain of O. xuefengensis. Light represses vegetative growth, but conidia linked to stromata can be observed under both light and dark conditions. Light and dark conditions had little effect on the accumulation of polysaccharides and adenosine. The genes Oxwc-1 and Oxwc-2 encoding photoreceptors of O. xuefengensis were cloned and predicted to possess polypeptides of 937 and 525 amino acids, respectively. A phylogenetic analysis based on fungal WC-1/2 supported OxWC-1 and OxWC-2 were photoreceptor. The expression of both the Oxwc-1 and Oxwc-2 genes reached a maximum after receiving light stimulation for 15 min, which might relate to the inhibition of stromata growth.
Epimedium tianmenshanensis
is a rare perennial herb distributed in China, and it is also an important medicinal plant. Here, we used illumina paired-end sequencing technology to obtain the complete ...chloroplast genome of
E. tianmenshanensis
, and compared analysis with related species. The length of the complete chloroplast genome of
E. tianmenshanensis
is 156,956 bp, which is a relatively conserved quadripartite structure including a large single copy (LSC) region of 88,409 bp, a small single copy (SSC) region of 17,448 bp, and a pair of inverted repeat (IRa/IRb) regions of 25,550 bp. The whole genome contains 132 unique genes, including 85 protein-coding genes, 38 tRNA genes, eight rRNA genes and one pseudogene. 87 simple sequence repeats (SSRs) were identified, and most of them were found to be composed of A/T. In addition, 22,923 codons were detected in 78 protein-coding genes of
E. tianmenshanensis
, and the overall codon bias pattern in the genome tended to use A/U ending codons. Phylogenetic analysis demonstrated that all the
Epimedium
species formed a monophyletic clade, and
E. tianmenshanensis
had the closest relationship to
E. dolichostemon.
The results of this study provided useful molecular information about the evolution and molecular biology of
E. tianmenshanensis
.
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