Acrylamide Exposure Impairs Ovarian Tricarboxylic Acid Cycle and Reduces Oocyte Quality in Mouse.

Acrylamide (AAM), a compound extensively utilized in various industrial applications, has been reported to induce toxic effects across multiple tissues in living organisms. Despite its widespread use, the impact of AAM on ovarian function and the mechanisms underlying these effects remain poorly understood. Here, we established an AAM-exposed mouse toxicological model using 21 days of intragastric AAM administration. AAM exposure decreased ovarian coefficient and impaired follicle development. Further investigations revealed AAM would trigger apoptosis and disturb tricarboxylic acid cycle in ovarian tissue, thus affecting mitochondrial electron transport function. Moreover, AAM exposure decreased oocyte and embryo development potential, mechanically associated with pericentrin and phosphorylated Aurora A cluster failure, leading to meiotic spindle assembly defects. Collectively, these results suggest that AAM exposure may lead to apoptosis, glucose metabolic disorders, and mitochondrial dysfunction in ovary tissue, ultimately compromising oocyte quality.

Rosmarinic acid mitigates acrylamide induced neurotoxicity via suppressing endoplasmic reticulum stress and inflammation in mouse hippocampus.

BACKGROUND: Acrylamide (ACR) is a widely used compound that is known to be neurotoxic to both experimental animals and humans, causing nerve damage. The widespread presence of ACR in the environment and food means that the toxic risk to human health can no longer be ignored. Rosmarinic acid (RA), a natural polyphenolic compound extracted from the perilla plant, exhibits anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and other properties. It has also been demon strated to possess promising potential in neuroprotection. However, its role and potential mechanism in treating ACR induced neurotoxicity are still elusive. PURPOSE: This study explores whether RA can improve ACR induced neurotoxicity and its possible mechanism. METHODS: The behavioral method was used to study RA effect on ACR exposed mice's neurological function. We studied its potential mechanism through metabolomics, Nissl staining, HE staining, immunohistochemical analysis, and Western blot. RESULTS: RA pretreatment reversed the increase in mouse landing foot splay and decrease in spontaneous activity caused by 3 weeks of exposure to 50 mg/kg/d ACR. Further experiments demonstrated that RA could prevent ACR induced neuronal apoptosis, significantly downregulate nuclear factor-κB and tumor necrosis factor-α expression, and inhibit NOD-like receptor protein 3 inflammasome activation, thereby reducing inflammation as confirmed by metabolomics results. Additionally, RA treatment prevented endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS) caused by ACR exposure, as evidenced by the reversal of significant P-IRE1α,TRAF2,CHOP expression increase. CONCLUSION: RA alleviates ACR induced neurotoxicity by inhibiting ERS and inflammation. These results provide a deeper understanding of the mechanism of ACR induced neurotoxicity and propose a potential new treatment method.

[Effect of moxibustion on plaque psoriasis complicated with obesity].

OBJECTIVE: To observe the clinical efficacy of moxibustion combined with coptis chinensis ointment sealing on plaque psoriasis complicated with obesity. METHODS: A total of 52 patients of plaque psoriasis complicated with obesity were randomized into an observation group (26 cases) and a control group (26 cases, 2 cases dropped off). Coptis chinensis ointment sealing was adopted in the control group. On the basis of the treatment in the control group, moxibustion was applied at ashi point (area of local target lesions), Zhongwan (CV 12) and bilateral Zusanli (ST 36), Fenglong (ST 40), Quchi (LI 11), Tianshu (ST 25), Shangjuxu (ST 37) in the observation group. The treatment was given 30 min each time, once a day for 4 weeks in both groups. The psoriasis area and severity index (PASI) score, obesity related indexes (body mass, waist circumference, body mass index [BMI]), triglyceride, cholesterol, uric acid and plasma glucose were compared before and after treatment, and the clinical efficacy was evaluated in the two groups. RESULTS: After treatment, the PASI scores were decreased compared with those before treatment in the two groups (P<0.01), and the PASI score in the observation group was lower than that in the control group (P<0.05); the body mass, waist circumference, BMI, triglyceride, cholesterol, uric acid and plasma glucose were decreased compared with those before treatment in the observation group (P<0.01, P<0.05), the triglyceride and cholesterol in the observation group were lower than those in the control group (P<0.05). The total effective rate was 53.8% (14/26) in the observation group, which was superior to 20.8% (5/24) in the control group (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Moxibustion combined with coptis chinensis ointment sealing can effectively improve the clinical symptoms in patients of plaque psoriasis complicated with obesity.

Design, synthesis, antiviral activities of ferulic acid derivatives.

A series of novel ferulic acid derivatives were designed and synthesized, and the twenty-one compounds were evaluated for their antiviral activities against Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1), and enterovirus type 71 (EV71). These derivatives with the core structure of diphenyl acrylic acids had cis-trans isomers, which were confirmed by 1H NMR, HPLC, and UV-vis spectra for the first time. The A5 had a selective effect against RSV but no work on herpes simplex virus type 1 and enterovirus type 71, which showed a therapeutic index (TI) of 32 and was significantly better than ferulic acid. The A5 had no scavenging effect on free radicals, but the A2 as the degradation of A5 showed an obvious scavenging effect on DPPH· and ABTS+·. In addition, the A5 had no toxicity to endothelial cells and even showed a proliferative effect. Therefore, the A5 is worth further optimizing its structure as a lead compound and investigating the mechanism of inhibiting Respiratory syncytial virus.

Effects of a Ganoderma atrum polysaccharide against pancreatic damage in streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice.

This study aimed at exploring the role of a Ganoderma atrum polysaccharide (PSG-1) in pancreatic damage in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) mice. The results suggested that blood glucose was significantly increased in the STZ group in comparison with the control group. After 4 weeks of treatment with PSG-1 or metformin (MET), blood glucose levels in the PSG-1 and MET groups were apparently lower than in the STZ group, indicating that PSG-1 triggered hypoglycemic effects in vivo. Moreover, experiments demonstrated that PSG-1 markedly decreased apoptosis of islet cells by inhibiting the mitochondrial apoptotic pathway and activating the PI3K/Akt survival pathway. PSG-1 also exerted anti-inflammatory effects, as evidenced by the dramatically decreased levels of IL-1ß, TNF-α and INF-γ and restraint of the TLR4-dependent NF-κB signal pathway. Meanwhile, PSG-1 maintained homeostasis of redox systems by increasing the activities of anti-oxidant enzymes and decreasing the amount of malondialdehyde in the pancreas. Together, these data provide evidence that PSG-1 can be employed as an alternative dietary supplement to ameliorate T1DM.