•Dietary ingredients and food additives have a substantial impact on the gut microbiota.•We provide updates on current understanding of the gut microbiota in diseases and metabolic disorders.•Potency ...of microbiota-targeted biomarkers to diagnosis of diseases is discussed.
There is growing recognition of the role of diet on modulating the composition and metabolic activity of the human gut microbiota, which in turn influence health. Dietary ingredients and food additives have a substantial impact on the gut microbiota and hence affect human health. Updates on current understanding of the gut microbiota in diseases and metabolic disorders are addressed in this review, providing insights into how this can be transferred from bench to bench side as gut microbes are integrated with food. The potency of microbiota-targeted biomarkers as a state-of-art tool for diagnosis of diseases was also discussed, and it would instruct individuals with healthy dietary consumption. Herein, recent advances in understanding the effect of diet on gut microbiota from an ecological perspective, and how these insights might promote health by guiding development of prebiotic and probiotic strategies and functional foods, were explored.
Abstract
TcpC is a multifunctional virulence factor of uropathogenic
E. coli
(UPEC). Neutrophil extracellular trap formation (NETosis) is a crucial anti-infection mechanism of neutrophils. Here we ...show the influence of TcpC on NETosis and related mechanisms. We show NETosis in the context of a pyelonephritis mouse model induced by TcpC-secreting wild-type
E. coli
CFT073 (CFT073
wt
) and LPS-induced in vitro NETosis with CFT073
wt
or recombinant TcpC (rTcpC)-treated neutrophils are inhibited. rTcpC enters neutrophils through caveolin-mediated endocytosis and inhibits LPS-induced production of ROS, proinflammatory cytokines and protein but not mRNA levels of peptidylarginine deiminase 4 (PAD4). rTcpC treatment enhances PAD4 ubiquitination and accumulation in proteasomes. Moreover, in vitro ubiquitination kit analyses show that TcpC is a PAD4-targetd E3 ubiquitin-ligase. These data suggest that TcpC inhibits NETosis primarily by serving as an E3 ligase that promotes degradation of PAD4. Our findings provide a novel mechanism underlying TcpC-mediated innate immune evasion.
Human cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzymes, as membrane-bound hemoproteins, play important roles in the detoxification of drugs, cellular metabolism, and homeostasis. In humans, almost 80% of oxidative ...metabolism and approximately 50% of the overall elimination of common clinical drugs can be attributed to one or more of the various CYPs, from the CYP families 1-3. In addition to the basic metabolic effects for elimination, CYPs are also capable of affecting drug responses by influencing drug action, safety, bioavailability, and drug resistance through metabolism, in both metabolic organs and local sites of action. Structures of CYPs have recently provided new insights into both understanding the mechanisms of drug metabolism and exploiting CYPs as drug targets. Genetic polymorphisms and epigenetic changes in CYP genes and environmental factors may be responsible for interethnic and interindividual variations in the therapeutic efficacy of drugs. In this review, we summarize and highlight the structural knowledge about CYPs and the major CYPs in drug metabolism. Additionally, genetic and epigenetic factors, as well as several intrinsic and extrinsic factors that contribute to interindividual variation in drug response are also reviewed, to reveal the multifarious and important roles of CYP-mediated metabolism and elimination in drug therapy.
Aim
H
2
S is emerging as a signaling molecule involved in the regulation of many physiological processes in plants. Here, we investigated the potential antioxidant role of H
2
S in soybean (
Glycine ...max
)-rhizobia (
Sinorhizobium fredii
) symbiotic root nodules.
Method
An endogenous H
2
S production deficit rhizobia mutant ∆
CSE
was constructed to study the effect of decreased content of H
2
S in soybean nodules. Fluorescent probes and confocal microscope were used to observe the production and accumulation of H
2
S and reactive oxygen species. Transmission electronic microscopy was conducted to study the structural changes in ∆
CSE
soybean nodules. Finally, qRT-PCR, enzymatic activity, and oxidative damage parameters were measured.
Result
The results demonstrated that abundant H
2
S was generated in the nitrogen-fixing zone of soybean nodules. The deletion of the cystathionine γ-lyase (
CSE
) gene in
S. fredii
(
∆CSE
) caused a sharp decrease in H
2
S production in both free-living rhizobia and soybean nodules. We found that decrease in the H
2
S level in nodule cells inhibited nitrogenase activity. In addition, to elevated H
2
O
2
and malondialdehyde accumulation, increased protein carbonyl content and decreased O
2
−
scavenging ability was observed in ∆CSE root nodules. Transmission electron microscopy revealed that an H
2
S deficit caused the deformation of bacteroids and damage of peribacteroid membranes in nodule cells. Moreover, the expression of some rhizobial and soybean genes related to antioxidant defense was up-regulated in
∆CSE
nodules.
Conclusion
H
2
S is crucial for the nitrogen-fixation ability of soybean nodules by acting as an antioxidant element that protects nodule cells and bacteroids from oxidative damage.
In recent years melatonin has emerged as a research highlight in plant studies. Melatonin has different functions in many aspects of plant growth and development. The most frequently mentioned ...functions of melatonin are related to abiotic stresses such as drought, radiation, extreme temperature, and chemical stresses. This review mainly focuses on the regulatory effects of melatonin when plants face harsh environmental conditions. Evidence indicates that environmental stress can increase the level of endogenous melatonin in plants. Overexpression of the melatonin biosynthetic genes elevates melatonin levels in transgenic plants. The transgenic plants show enhanced tolerance to abiotic stresses. Exogenously applied melatonin can also improve the ability of plants to tolerate abiotic stresses. The mechanisms by which melatonin alleviates abiotic stresses are discussed.
The acoustic coding metasurfaces (ACMs) have the ability to manipulate complex acoustic behavior by reconstructing the coding sequence. In particular, the design of broadband coding enhances the ...versatility of ACMs. ACMs offer significant advantages over traditional metasurfaces, including a limited number of units and flexible wave control performance. The unit quantity is determined by 2
, with 1-bit utilizing 2 units, 2-bit using 4 units, and 3-bit employing 8 units. Utilizing multiple bits allows for precise control over the phase of sound waves and enables the realization of more intricate acoustic functions. To address the requirements of broadband multi-bit applications, this paper presents the development of novel 3-bit broadband reflected acoustic coding metasurfaces (BACMs) with eight coding units. These metasurfaces are systematically designed using the bottom-up topology optimization method. A constant phase difference of 45° can be achieved across all eight coding units within a broad frequency range. Additionally, the spiral distribution of phase differences enables the construction of an acoustic vortex metasurface. Moreover, by combining the convolution method, the strategies are outlined for constructing vortex-focusing metasurfaces and vortex beam manipulation metasurfaces. These 3-bit coding metasurfaces possess significant potential in the fields of acoustic particle suspension and acoustic communication.
Zika virus (ZIKV), a re-emerging flavivirus associated with neurological disorders, has spread rapidly to more than 70 countries and territories. However, no specific vaccines or antiviral drugs are ...currently available to prevent or treat ZIKV infection. Here we report that a synthetic peptide derived from the stem region of ZIKV envelope protein, designated Z2, potently inhibits infection of ZIKV and other flaviviruses in vitro. We show that Z2 interacts with ZIKV surface protein and disrupts the integrity of the viral membrane. Z2 can penetrate the placental barrier to enter fetal tissues and is safe for use in pregnant mice. Intraperitoneal administration of Z2 inhibits vertical transmission of ZIKV in pregnant C57BL/6 mice and protects type I or type I/II interferon receptor-deficient mice against lethal ZIKV challenge. Thus, Z2 has potential to be further developed as an antiviral treatment against ZIKV infection in high-risk populations, particularly pregnant women.
In this work, the polyaniline nanorods/graphene sheets composites with covalent bond were synthesized through in-situ polymerization of aniline in the presence of amino-functionalized graphene sheets ...(AFG), in which polyaniline (PANI) polymerization is initiated by those amino groups on graphene. The chemical bonding between graphene and PANI is confirmed by several analytical techniques, including Fourier transform infrared spectra (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The microwave-absorbing properties of the composites were measured by a vector network analyzer. The electromagnetic data demonstrates that the maximum reflection loss of covalently bonded PANI-AFG can reach −51.5dB at 11.2GHz, and the absorption bandwidths exceeding −10dB are 4GHz with thickness of 2.5mm. The results indicate that the hybrid composites with enhanced microwave absorption properties and lightweight have a promising future in decreasing electromagnetic wave irradiation.
Hydrogen sulphide (H2S), a new gas signal molecule, participates in the regulation of various abiotic stresses in plants. However, how the tandem working of H2S and rhizobia affects the adaptation of ...soybean to water deficiency is still unclear. In this study, we investigated the adaptation mechanism of H2S and rhizobia in soybean to water deficiency. Our results revealed that H2S and rhizobia jointly enhanced the leaf chlorophyll content and relative water content in plants, and caused an increase in the biomass of soybean seedlings under water deficiency. Besides, in the absence of water, H2S enhanced the biomass by affecting the number of nodules and nitrogenase activity during vegetative growth. The expression of nodulation marker genes including early nodulin 40 (GmENOD40), ERF required for nodulation (GmERN) and nodulation inception genes (GmNIN1a, GmNIN2a and GmNIN2b) were upregulated by H2S and rhizobia in the nodules. Moreover, the combined effect of H2S and rhizobia was proved to affect the enzyme activities and gene expression level of antioxidants, as well as osmotic protective substance content and related gene expression levels under water deficiency in soybean seedlings. In addition, the metabolomic results suggested that the combined effect of H2S and rhizobia remarkably promoted the contents of lipids and lipid‐like molecules. Our results indicated that H2S and rhizobia synergistically reduced the oxidative damage caused by water deficiency through increasing the accumulation of metabolites and strengthening the plant antioxidant capacity.
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