Epidemic trends of dyslipidemia in young adults: a real-world study including more than 20,000 samples.

BACKGROUND: There is an urgent need to learn more about the epidemiological features of dyslipidemia in youth to address the high burden of cardiovascular disease. METHODS: This experiment was an observational, cross-sectional study. The samples were collected from 22,379 college students at Xinjiang Medical University. RESULT: The overall prevalence of dyslipidemia was 13.17%, which was significantly higher in men (23%) than in women (7.2%), p < 0.01. Similarly, the prevalence rate of obesity in men (11.4%) was significantly higher than that in women (3.4%). The composition of blood lipids, such as triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TC), and low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), began to increase gradually from the age of 22 and showed a sharp increase after the age of 30; however, a reverse trend was present in high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C). In terms of the proportion of dyslipidemia in both men and women, low HDL-C accounted for the largest proportion (74%), followed by elevated TGs (14.5%). The overall distribution of rates of dyslipidemia and excess weight showed a U-shaped trend with increasing age, with the lowest rates seen in the 20-24 age group. CONCLUSION: Our study sheds light on the epidemiological features of dyslipidemia in young adults and enriches the limited data available on dyslipidemia, providing a reference for the close monitoring and control of risk factors to reduce the occurrence and progression of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease events.

[Two new steroidal alkaloids from ripe berries of Solanum nigrum].

Two previously undescribed steroidal alkaloids, compounds 1-2, along with two known ones(3-4), were isolated from the 80% ethanol extract of ripe berries of Solanum nigrum by chromatographic methods, including silica gel, ODS, and HPLC. Based on spectroscopic and chemical evidence, including IR, NMR, and HR-ESI-MS data, the structures of the isolated compounds were identified as 12ß,27-dihydroxy solasodine-3-O-ß-D-glucopyranoside(1), 27-hydroxy solasodine-3-O-ß-D-glucopyranosyl-(1→4)-α-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1→2)-[α-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1→4)]-ß-D-glucopyranoside(2), solalyraine A(3), and 12ß,27-dihydroxy solasodine(4). Compounds 1-2 were tested for their potential effects against the proliferation of A549 cells, which revealed that compounds 1-2 had weak cytotoxic activity.

miR824-Regulated AGAMOUS-LIKE16 Contributes to Flowering Time Repression in Arabidopsis.

The timing of flowering is pivotal for maximizing reproductive success under fluctuating environmental conditions. Flowering time is tightly controlled by complex genetic networks that integrate endogenous and exogenous cues, such as light, temperature, photoperiod, and hormones. Here, we show that AGAMOUS-LIKE16 (AGL16) and its negative regulator microRNA824 (miR824) control flowering time in Arabidopsis thaliana. Knockout of AGL16 effectively accelerates flowering in nonvernalized Col-FRI, in which the floral inhibitor FLOWERING LOCUS C (FLC) is strongly expressed, but shows no effect if plants are vernalized or grown in short days. Alteration of AGL16 expression levels by manipulating miR824 abundance influences the timing of flowering quantitatively, depending on the expression level and number of functional FLC alleles. The effect of AGL16 is fully dependent on the presence of FLOWERING LOCUS T (FT). Further experiments show that AGL16 can interact directly with SHORT VEGETATIVE PHASE and indirectly with FLC, two proteins that form a complex to repress expression of FT. Our data reveal that miR824 and AGL16 modulate the extent of flowering time repression in a long-day photoperiod.

Bioactive solanidane steroidal alkaloids from Solanum lyratum.

Six previously unreported solanidane steroidal alkaloids, namely lyrasolanosides A-F, were isolated from Solanum lyratum. In addition, five known steroidal alkaloids were also identified. The structures of these compounds were determined through the use of NMR, HRESIMS,UV, IR and ECD analysis. To assess their bioactivities, the cytotoxic effects of the six previously unreported compounds were evaluated on A549 cells. The results revealed that lyrasolanoside B (2) exhibited the highest potency among them. Lyrasolanoside B (2) exhibited significant inhibition of cell migration, invasion, and adhesion dramatically. Mechanistically, it was found to suppress the activity of JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway by downregulating the expression of phosphorylated JAK2/STAT3 in an exosome-dependent manner. In addition, lyrasolanoside B (2) was found to significantly upregulate the expression of E-cadherin and downregulate the expression of N-cadherin and vimentin. These findings indicate that lyrasolanoside B (2) inhibits the metastasis of A549 cells by suppressing exosome-mediated EMT. These findings suggest that lyrasolanoside B (2) may inhibit the metastasis of lung cancer by regulating A549-derived exosomes.

Steroidal alkaloids from Solanum nigrum and their cytotoxic activities.

Eight undescribed, along with five known steroidal alkaloids were isolated from Solanum nigrum L., a plant used in traditional Chinese medicine. Their structures were elucidated by NMR, HR-ESI-MS, and IR spectroscopy. Two compounds displayed an unusual structure in steroidal alkaloids with an open E-ring and without an F-ring present. To evaluate their bioactivities, nine compounds were selected to intervene five human cancer cell lines including H1299, HepG2, HeLa, HCT116, and MCF7 respectively. All compounds exhibited inhibitory effects for the five cell lines, revealing potential anti-tumor activities from Solanum nigrum.

Steroidal glycoalkaloids from Solanum lyratum inhibit the pro-angiogenic activity of A549-derived exosomes.

In this study, seven previously undescribed steroidal glycoalkaloids, compounds 1-7, were isolated from Solanum lyratum, along with two known ones (8 and 9). Comprehensive spectroscopy techniques were used to determine their structures. Although 1-8 only showed a weak inhibitory effect on the proliferation of the tumor-derived vascular endothelial cells, however, in a former study we found both total steroidal glycoalkaloids from Solanum lyratum (TSGS) and 9 significantly inhibited tumor angiogenesis and its mechanism was linked to its ability to interfere with cell membrane lipid rafts. Lipid rafts are closely related to the functions of tumor-derived exosomes, a vital factor in cancer progression. Thus, we investigated the impacts of TSGS and 9 on the functions of A549-derived exosomes. Our results indicated that A549-derived exosomes can significantly enhance the angiogenesis abilities of human umbilical vein endothelial cells, whereas the intervention of TSGS or 9 significantly inhibited this activity of A549-derived exosomes. These findings suggest that TSGS and 9 exert anti-tumor angiogenesis by inhibiting the pro-angiogenic activity of A549-derived exosomes.

Removal of multiple nitrogenous wastes by Aspergillus niger in a continuous fixed-slab reactor.

A biofilter reactor, to which is attached a large variety of microorganisms, can be employed to treat circulating water in an intensive aquaculture system. Some nitrogen-containing wastes, such as ammonium and nitrite, are toxic to the aquatic organisms. The removal rates of the nitrogenous wastes are regarded as indices for the efficiency of treatment by biofilters. In this study, a fungus that was characterized as being able to remediate multiple nitrogenous wastes was identified as Aspergillus niger NBG5. In a continuous fixed-slab reactor, the heterotrophic fungus utilized ammonium, nitrite, protein, and glucose simultaneously. The fungus assimilated ammonium, nitrite and protein at rates of 0.247, 0.07 and 0.096 g-N/g-cell/day, respectively, at 22 degrees C. The remediation rates of ammonium nitrogenous wastes decreased by a factor of eight at 35 degrees C, while the specific growth rates slightly increased. For nitrogenous wastes, ammonium was a preferred substrate but its rate of consumption declined significantly as temperature increased. The nitrogen consumption rates were inconsistent with the cell yields at high temperature. Further analysis of consumption ratios of C/N revealed that cells grew predominantly from the carbon at high temperature. The A. niger NBG5 consumed glucose rapidly at specific rates of 2-2.5 g-C/g-cell/day at 35 degrees C in the presence of ammonium and nitrite; while sluggish consumption of glucose was observed in the protein substrate. The protein could serve as an alternative carbon source. Further ANOVA statistical analysis with P < 0.05 revealed no significant effects of temperature on the specific growth rates of A. niger on the SG-NH4 and milk-protein substrates, whereas significant effects on the C/N ratio at culture temperatures higher than 25 degrees C were observed. These findings indicated that the carbon utilization rate increased with high temperature, whereas nitrogen utilization increased as temperature declined. A suitable operational temperature was suggested, depending upon the amount of waste contents of C/N. A high temperature stimulates the use of carbon waste, while a low temperature favors remediation of all nitrogenous wastes.