Gastrodia elata rhizoma ameliorates thioacetamide-induced liver injury in dogs.

Objective: The study aimed to investigate the hepatoprotective effects of Gastrodia elata rhizome (GR) on thioacetamide (TAA)-induced liver injury in dogs. We evaluated serum biochemical and hematological parameters, with emphasis on alanine transaminase (ALT), alanine phosphates (ALP), and nitric oxide (NO) levels, in dogs with TAA-induced liver injury. Materials and Methods: The animals were divided into a control group (Con), TAA group, Silymarin group (Sil, 50 mg/kg), Gastrodia rhizome low dose (GRL) (low) + TAA, GRH (high) + TAA, and GR high-dose group (GRH) control group. GRL and GRH were given daily at 50 and 100 mg/kg, respectively. TAA was given on days 1, 4, and 7 at a dose of 300 mg/kg. Results: GR significantly reduced liver injury in treated animals, as indicated by lowered levels of ALT (about 32% at day 21 in both GRL + TAA and GRH + TAA groups), ALP (about 17% and 21% at day 21 in both GRL + TAA, GRH + TAA groups, respectively), and NO (about 36% at day 21 in both GRL + TAA, GRH + TAA groups) compared to the TAA control group. Hematological parameters showed mild changes during the experiment. High-performance liquid chromatography analysis revealed gastrodin, a major component of the GR extract, constitutes 2.6% of the extract. Conclusion: The GR demonstrated significant hepatoprotective effects against TAA-induced liver injury in dogs. The study provides evidence for the potential therapeutic use of GR in the management of liver diseases.

Modified gellan gum-based hydrogel with enhanced mechanical properties for application as a cell carrier for cornea endothelial cells.

Recently, the number of people suffering from visual loss due to eye diseases is increasing rapidly around the world. However, due to the severe donor shortage and the immune response, corneal replacement is needed. Gellan gum (GG) is biocompatible and widely used for cell delivery or drug delivery, but its strength is not suitable for the corneal substitute. In this study, a GM hydrogel was prepared by blending methacrylated gellan gum with GG (GM) to give suitable mechanical properties to the corneal tissue. In addition, lithium phenyl-2,4,6-trimethylbenzoylphosphinate (LAP), a crosslinking initiator, was added to the GM hydrogel. After the photo-crosslinking treatment, it was named GM/LAP hydrogel. GM and GM/LAP hydrogels were analyzed for physicochemical properties, mechanical characterization, and transparency tests to confirm their applicability as carriers for corneal endothelial cells (CEnCs). Also, in vitro studies were performed with cell viability tests, cell proliferation tests, cell morphology, cell-matrix remodeling analysis, and gene expression evaluation. The compressive strength of the GM/LAP hydrogel was improved compared to the GM hydrogel. The GM/LAP hydrogel showed excellent cell viability, proliferation, and cornea-specific gene expression than the GM hydrogel. Crosslinking-improved GM/LAP hydrogel can be applied as a promising cell carrier in corneal tissue engineering.

Fabrication and Evaluation of Gellan Gum/Hyaluronic Acid Hydrogel for Retinal Tissue Engineering Biomaterial and the Influence of Substrate Stress Relaxation on Retinal Pigment Epithelial Cells.

Cell therapies for age-related macular degeneration (AMD) treatment have been developed by integrating hydrogel-based biomaterials. Until now, cell activity has been observed only in terms of the modulus of the hydrogel. In addition, cell behavior has only been observed in the 2D environment of the hydrogel and the 3D matrix. As time-dependent stress relaxation is considered a significant mechanical cue for the control of cellular activities, it is important to optimize hydrogels for retinal tissue engineering (TE) by applying this viewpoint. Herein, a gellan Gum (GG)/Hyaluronic acid (HA) hydrogel was fabricated using a facile physical crosslinking method. The physicochemical and mechanical properties were controlled by forming a different composition of GG and HA. The characterization was performed by conducting a mass swelling study, a sol fraction study, a weight loss test, a viscosity test, an injection force study, a compression test, and a stress relaxation analysis. The biological activity of the cells encapsulated in 3D constructs was evaluated by conducting a morphological study, a proliferation test, a live/dead analysis, histology, immunofluorescence staining, and a gene expression study to determine the most appropriate material for retinal TE biomaterial. Hydrogels with moderate amounts of HA showed improved physicochemical and mechanical properties suitable for injection into the retina. Moreover, the time-dependent stress relaxation property of the GG/HA hydrogel was enhanced when the appropriate amount of HA was loaded. In addition, the cellular compatibility of the GG/HA hydrogel in in vitro experiments was significantly improved in the fast-relaxing hydrogel. Overall, these results demonstrate the remarkable potential of GG/HA hydrogel as an injectable hydrogel for retinal TE and the importance of the stress relaxation property when designing retinal TE hydrogels. Therefore, we believe that GG/HA hydrogel is a prospective candidate for retinal TE biomaterial.

Correlation Analysis of Noise, Vibration, and Harshness in a Vehicle Using Driving Data Based on Big Data Analysis Technique.

A new development process for the noise, vibration, and harshness (NVH) of a vehicle is presented using data analysis and machine learning with long-term NVH driving data. The process includes exploratory data analysis (EDA), variable importance analysis, correlation analysis, sensitivity analysis, and development target selection. In this paper, to dramatically reduce the development period and cost related to vehicle NVH, we propose a technique that can accurately identify the precise connectivity and relationship between vehicle systems and NVH factors. This new technique uses whole big data and reflects the nonlinearity of dynamic characteristics, which was not considered in existing methods, and no data are discarded. Through the proposed method, it is possible to quickly find areas that need improvement through correlation analysis and variable importance analysis, understand how much room noise increases when the NVH level of the system changes through sensitivity analysis, and reduce vehicle development time by improving efficiency. The method could be used in the development process and the validation of other deep learning and machine learning models. It could be an essential step in applying artificial intelligence, big data, and data analysis in the vehicle and mobility industry as a future vehicle development process.

Macro- and microporous polycaprolactone/duck's feet collagen scaffold fabricated by combining facile phase separation and particulate leaching techniques to enhance osteogenesis for bone tissue engineering.

Herein, a facile macro- and microporous polycaprolactone/duck's feet collagen scaffold (PCL/DC) was fabricated and characterized to confirm its applicability in bone tissue engineering. A biomimetic scaffold for bone tissue engineering and regeneration for bone defects is an important element. PCL is a widely applied biomaterial for bone tissue engineering due to its biocompatibility and biodegradability. However, the high hydrophobicity and low cell attachment site properties of PCL lead to an insufficient microenvironment in designing a scaffold. Collagen is a nature-derived biomaterial that is widely used in tissue engineering and has excellent biocompatibility, mechanical properties, and cell attachment moieties. Among the resources from which collagen can be obtained, DC contains a high amount of collagen type I (COL1), is biocompatible, and is cost-effective. In this study, the scaffolds were fabricated by blending DC with PCL in various ratios and applied non-solvent-induced phase separation (NIPS) and thermal-induced phase separation (TIPS) (N-TIPS), solvent casting and particulate leaching (SCPL), and gas foaming method to fabricate macro- and microporous structure. The characterization of the fabricated scaffolds was carried out by morphological analysis, bioactivity test, physicochemical analysis, and mechanical test. In vitro study was carried out by viability test, morphology observation, and gene expression. The results showed that the incorporation of DC enhances the physicochemical and mechanical properties of the scaffolds. Also, a large amount of bone mimetic apatite was formed according to the DC content in the bioactivity test. The in vitro study showed that the PCL/DC scaffold is biocompatible and the existence of apatite and DC formed a favorable microenvironment for cell proliferation and differentiation. Overall, the novel porous PCL/DC scaffold can be a promising biomaterial model for bone tissue engineering and regeneration.

Component-Wise Error Correction Method for UWB-Based Localization in Target-Following Mobile Robot.

Target-following mobile robots have gained attention in various industrial applications. This study proposes an ultra-wideband-based target localization method that provides highly accurate and robust target tracking performance for a following robot. Based on the least square approximation framework, the proposed method improves localization accuracy by compensating localization bias and high-frequency deviations component by component. Initial calibration method is proposed to measure the device-dependent localization bias, which enables a compensation of the bias error not only at the calibration points, but also at the any other points. An iterative complementary filter, which recursively produces optimal estimation for each timeframe as a weighted sum of previous and current estimation depending on the reliability of each estimation, is proposed to reduce the deviation of the localization error. The performance of the proposed method is validated using simulations and experiments. Both the magnitude and deviation of the localization error were significantly improved by up to 77 and 51%, respectively, compared with the previous method.

Estimation of Health-Related Physical Fitness (HRPF) Levels of the General Public Using Artificial Neural Network with the National Fitness Award (NFA) Datasets.

Estimation of health-related physical fitness (HRPF) levels of individuals is indispensable for providing personalized training programs in smart fitness services. In this study, we propose an artificial neural network (ANN)-based estimation model to predict HRPF levels of the general public using simple affordable physical information. The model is designed to use seven inputs of personal physical information, including age, gender, height, weight, percent body fat, waist circumference, and body mass index (BMI), to estimate levels of muscle strength, flexibility, maximum rate of oxygen consumption (VO2max), and muscular endurance. HRPF data (197,719 sets) gathered from the National Fitness Award dataset are used for training (70%) and validation (30%) of the model. In-depth analysis of the model's estimation accuracy is conducted to derive optimal estimation accuracy. This included input/output correlation, hidden layer structures, data standardization, and outlier removals. The performance of the model is evaluated by comparing the estimation accuracy with that of a multiple linear regression (MLR) model. The results demonstrate that the proposed model achieved up to 10.06% and 30.53% improvement in terms of R2 and SEE, respectively, compared to the MLR model and provides reliable estimation of HRPF levels acceptable to smart fitness applications.

Phenolphthalein Anilide Based Poly(Ether Sulfone) Block Copolymers Containing Quaternary Ammonium and Imidazolium Cations: Anion Exchange Membrane Materials for Microbial Fuel Cell.

A class of phenolphthalein anilide (PA)-based poly(ether sulfone) multiblock copolymers containing pendant quaternary ammonium (QA) and imidazolium (IM) groups were synthesized and evaluated as anion exchange membrane (AEM) materials. The AEMs were flexible and mechanically strong with good thermal stability. The ionomeric multiblock copolymer AEMs exhibited well-defined hydrophobic/hydrophilic phase-separated morphology in small-angle X-ray scattering and atomic force microscopy. The distinct nanophase separated membrane morphology in the AEMs resulted in higher conductivity (IECw = 1.3-1.5 mequiv./g, σ(OH-) = 30-38 mS/cm at 20 °C), lower water uptake and swelling. Finally, the membranes were compared in terms of microbial fuel cell performances with the commercial cation and anion exchange membranes. The membranes showed a maximum power density of ~310 mW/m2 (at 0.82 A/m2); 1.7 and 2.8 times higher than the Nafion 117 and FAB-PK-130 membranes, respectively. These results demonstrated that the synthesized AEMs were superior to Nafion 117 and FAB-PK-130 membranes.

The Effect of College Students' Physical Activity Level on Depression and Personal Relationships.

BACKGROUND: Physical activity greatly affects human physical and mental health. This study investigated the effect of college students' physical activity levels on depression and personal relationships. METHODS: Participants were 525 college students from five Korean cities. The International Physical Activity Questionnaire, Beck's Depression Inventory, and Leary's interpersonal orientation paper test measured physical activity volume, depression, and interpersonal relationships, respectively. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, reliability analysis, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), and Pearson's correlation analysis. RESULTS: The results revealed significant differences among emotional, cognitive, and synchronous symptoms of depression across activity level groups. Regarding interpersonal relationships according to physical activity, for the sociometric disposition, there were differences between groups in the sympathetic-acceptable and sociable-friendliness factors and, for the expressive disposition, in the competitive-aggressive and rebellious-distrustful factors. CONCLUSIONS: There were statistical correlations between the physical activity volume and depression and the physical activity and interpersonal relationships. Subsequent research should examine college students' physical activities and causal relationships among various psychological variables.

Energy values and protein digestibility of soybean milk by-product in pigs based on in vitro assays / Valores energéticos y digestibilidad proteica del subproducto de la leche de soja en cerdos con base en ensayos in vitro / Valores energéticos e digestibilidade protéica do subproduto do leite de soja em suínos com base em ensaios in vitro

Abstract Background: Soybean milk by-product (SMBP) is a potential alternative feed ingredient in swine diets due to its high protein content. However, information on energy and nutritional values of SMBP used as swine feed ingredient is limited. Objective: To estimate energy values and protein digestibility of SMBP in pigs based on in vitro assays. Methods: Four SMBP samples were obtained from 3 soybean milk-producing facilities. In vitro total tract disappearance (IVTTD) and in vitro ileal disappearance (IVID) of dry matter (DM) in the SMBP samples were determined. In vitro ileal disappearance of crude protein was determined by analyzing crude protein content in undigested residues after determining IVID of DM. Digestible and metabolizable energy of SMBP were estimated using gross energy, IVTTD of DM, and prediction equations. Results: Sample 4 had greater IVTTD of DM than that of sample 3 (97.7 vs. 94.4%, p<0.05), whereas IVID of DM in sample 4 was lower compared with sample 1 (53.5 vs. 65.0%, p<0.05). In vitro ileal disappearance of crude protein in sample 2 was greater than that in sample 1 and 3 (92.6 vs. 90.6 and 90.1%; p<0.05). The estimated metabolizable energy of SMBP ranged from 4,311 to 4,619 kcal/kg as-is basis and the value of sample 3 was the least (p<0.05) among SMBP samples. Conclusion: Energy values and protein digestibility should be determined before using SMBP in swine diets.

Resumen Antecedentes: El subproducto de la leche de soja (SMBP) es un ingrediente alimenticio alternativo con uso potencial en dietas porcinas dado su alto contenido de proteína. Sin embargo, la información sobre sus valores energéticos y nutricionales para alimentación de cerdos es muy limitada. Objetivo: Estimar los valores de energía y la digestibilidad de la proteína del SMBP en cerdos con base en ensayos in vitro. Métodos: Se obtuvieron cuatro muestras de SMBP de tres empresas productoras de leche de soja. Se determinaron la desaparición de tracto total in vitro (IVTTD) y la desaparición ileal in vitro (IVID) de la materia seca (DM) en las muestras de SMBP. La desaparición ileal in vitro de proteína cruda se determinó analizando el contenido de proteína cruda en residuos no digeridos después de determinar la IVID de la DM. La energía digestible y metabolizable de SMBP se estimó utilizando la energía bruta, IVTTD de la DM y ecuaciones de predicción. Resultados: La muestra 4 tuvo una mayor IVTTD de la DM que la muestra 3 (97,7 vs. 94,4%, p<0,05), mientras que la IVID de la DM en la muestra 4 fue menor en comparación con la muestra 1 (53,5 vs. 65,0%, p<0,05). La desaparición ileal in vitro de la proteína cruda en la muestra 2 fue mayor que la de las muestras 1 y 3 (92,6 vs. 90,6 y 90,1%; p<0,05). La energía metabolizable estimada de SMBP varió de 4.311 a 4.619 kcal/kg (en base húmeda) y el valor de la muestra 3 fue el menor (p<0.05) entre las muestras de SMBP. Conclusión: Los valores de energía y la digestibilidad de la proteína deben determinarse antes de usar el SMBP en dietas porcinas.

Resumo Antecedentes: O subproduto do leite de soja (SMBP) é um potencial ingrediente alternativo na dieta de suínos, considerando seu alto teor de proteínas. No entanto, as informações sobre os valores energéticos e nutricionais do SMBP usado como ingrediente alimentar para suínos são limitadas. Objetivo: Estimar valores energéticos e digestibilidade protéica do SMBP em suínos com base em ensaios in vitro. Métodos: Foram obtidas quatro amostras de SMBP de três instalações produtores de leite de soja. Foram determinados o desaparecimento total do trato in vitro (IVTTD) e o desaparecimento ileal in vitro (IVID) da matéria seca (DM) nas amostras de SMBP. O desaparecimento ileal in vitro da proteína bruta foi determinado pela análise do conteúdo de proteína bruta em resíduos não digeridos após a determinação da IVID do DM. A energia digerível e metabolizável do SMBP foi estimada usando energia bruta, IVTTD do DM e equações de predição. Resultados: a amostra 4 apresentou maior IVTTD de DM do que a amostra 3 (97,7 vs. 94,4%, p<0,05) enquanto a IVID do DM na amostra 4 foi menor em comparação com a amostra 1 (53,5 vs. 65,0%, p<0,05). O desaparecimento ileal in vitro da proteína bruta na amostra 2 foi superior ao da amostra 1 e 3 (92,6 vs. 90,6 e 90,1%; p<0,05). A energia metabolizável estimada do SMBP variou de 4.311 a 4.619 kcal/kg no estado em que se encontra e o valor da amostra 3 foi o menor (p<0,05) entre as amostras do SMBP. Conclusão: os valores energéticos e a digestibilidade das proteínas devem ser determinados antes do uso do SMBP nas dietas suínas.

Purification and characterization of a novel ginsenoside Rc-hydrolyzing ß-glucosidase from Armillaria mellea mycelia.

Ginsenosides are the principal compounds responsible for the pharmacological effects and health benefits of Panax ginseng root. Among protopanaxadiol (PPD)-type ginsenosides, minor ginsenosides such as ginsenoside (G)-F2, G-Rh2, compound (C)-Mc1, C-Mc, C-O, C-Y, and C-K are known to be more pharmacologically active constituents than major ginsenosides such as G-Rb1, G-Rb2, G-Rc, and G-Rd. A novel ginsenoside Rc-hydrolyzing ß-glucosidase (BG-1) from Armillaria mellea mycelia was purified as a single protein band with molecular weight of 121.5 kDa on SDS-PAGE and a specific activity of 17.9 U mg-1 protein. BG-1 concurrently hydrolyzed α-(1 â†’ 6)-arabinofuranosidic linkage at the C-20 site or outer ß-(1 â†’ 2)-glucosidic linkage at the C-3 site of G-Rc to produce G-Rd and C-Mc1, respectively. The enzyme also hydrolyzed outer and inner glucosidic linkages at the C-3 site of G-Rd to produce C-K via G-F2, and inner glucosidic linkage at the C-3 site of C-Mc1 to produce C-Mc. C-Mc was also slowly hydrolyzed α-(1 â†’ 6)-arabinofuranosidic linkage at the C-20 site to produce C-K with reaction time prolongation. Finally, the pathways for formation of C-Mc and C-K from G-Rc by BG-1 were G-Rc â†’ C-Mc1 â†’ C-Mc and G-Rc â†’ G-Rd â†’ G-F2 â†’ C-K, respectively. The optimum reaction conditions for C-Mc and C-K formation from G-Rc by BG-1 were pH 4.0-4.5, temperature 45-60 °C, and reaction time 72-96 h. This is the first report of efficient production of minor ginsenosides, C-Mc and C-K from G-Rc by ß-glucosidase purified from A. mellea mycelia.