Synthesis of hyperbranched polyamine dendrimer/chitosan/silica composite for efficient adsorption of Hg(II).

The pollution of water system with Hg(II) exerts hazardous effect to ecosystem and public health. Adsorption is considered to be a promising strategy to remove Hg(II) from aqueous solution. Herein, hyperbranched polyamine dendrimer/chitosan/silica composite (SiO2-FP) was synthesized for the adsorption of aqueous Hg(II). The adsorption performance of SiO2-FP was comprehensively determined by considering various influencing factors. SiO2-FP displays good adsorption performance for Hg(II) with the adsorption capacity of 0.79 mmol·g-1, which is higher than the corresponding chitosan functionalized silica (SiO2-CTS) by 46.30 %. The optimal solution pH for the adsorption of Hg(II) is 6. Adsorption kinetic indicates the adsorption for Hg(II) can reach equilibrium at 250 min. Adsorption kinetic process can be well fitted by pseudo-second-order (PSO). Adsorption isotherm reveals the adsorption for Hg(II) can be promoted by increasing initial Hg(II) concentration and adsorption temperature. The adsorption isotherm indicates the adsorption process can be described by Langmuir model and the adsorption is a spontaneous, endothermic and entropy-increased process. SiO2-FP displays excellent adsorption selectivity and can 100 % adsorb Hg(II) with the coexisting of Ni(II), Zn(II), Pb(II), Mn(II), and Co(II). Adsorption mechanism demonstrates -NH-, -NH2, CN, CONH, -OH, and CO participated in the adsorption. SiO2-FP exhibits good regeneration property and the regeneration rate can maintain approximately 90 % after five adsorption-desorption cycles.

Kaempferide enhances antioxidant capacity to promote osteogenesis through FoxO1/ß-catenin signaling pathway.

BACKGROUND: Forkhead box O1 (FoxO1)/ß-catenin signaling pathway is a main oxidative defense pathway, which plays essential roles in the regulation of osteoporosis (OP). The natural products possess quality therapeutic effects and few side effects. It is used as a novel strategy in the treatment of OP. However, there is no systematic study in the natural antioxidant drug based on the FoxO1/ß-catenin signaling pathway. This paper aims to discover pro-osteogenesis natural antioxidants for the prevention and treatment of OP. METHODS: Systems pharmacology; combined with reverse drug targeting, systems-ADME process, network analysis and molecular docking, was used to screen natural antioxidants based on the FoxO1/ß-catenin signaling pathway. Then in vitro experiments were performed to evaluate the osteogenesis effects of screened natural antioxidants. RESULTS: Kaempferide was screened as the most potential antioxidant to improve osteogenesis by the regulation of the FoxO1/ß-catenin signaling pathway. In vitro experiments showed that kaempferide significantly increased the expression of antioxidant genes and promoted osteogenic differentiation. Furthermore, kaempferide also improved the osteogenic differentiation inhibited by H2O2 through the enhancement of antioxidant capacity. Notably, kaempferide promoted cell antioxidant capacity by the increased nuclear translocation of FoxO1 and ß-catenin. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that kaempferide is the natural antioxidant to promote osteogenesis effectively through the FoxO1/ß-catenin signaling pathway. Natural antioxidant therapy maybe a promising strategy for the prevention and treatment of OP.

A Comprehensive Analysis of MicroRNAs in Human Osteoporosis.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are single-stranded RNA molecules that control gene expression in various processes, such as cancers, Alzheimer's disease, and bone metabolic diseases. However, the regulatory roles of miRNAs in osteoporosis have not been systematically analyzed. Here, we performed a comprehensive analysis to identify the differentially expressed miRNAs involved in osteoporosis. MiRNAs associated with osteoporosis were collected through literature retrieval and further screened based on specific inclusion and exclusion criteria. The osteoporosis therapeutic targets of miRNAs were obtained by the integration of miRWalk 3.0 database and five human disease therapeutic target databases. Then, the network analysis and functional enrichment analysis of miRNAs and their targets were performed. As a result, 11 eligible miRNAs were identified highly associated with osteoporosis. MiRNA-mRNA network demonstrated there were the complex mutual interactions between miRNAs and their targets. Besides, ADRB2, AR, ESR1, FGFR1, TRAF6, etc., were identified as the top hub genes in protein-protein interaction (PPI) network. Functional enrichment analysis revealed that miRNAs and their targets were mainly mapped on processes associated with bone and immune system, such as bone remolding, bone mineralization, PI3K/AKt, TNF signaling pathways and Th17 cell differentiation. RT-PCR results showed that the expression of miR-335-3p was significantly down-regulated in hind limb unloading (HLU) mice tibia samples compared with controls, the remaining 10 miRNAs were significantly up-regulated after HLU (P < 0.01). In summary, we identified 11 differentially expressed miRNAs and their hub target genes in osteoporosis, which may be novel diagnostic biomarkers for osteoporosis.

Systems pharmacology dissection of action mechanisms of Dipsaci Radix for osteoporosis.

AIMS: Osteoporosis (OP) is a systemic metabolic bone disease characterized by bone mass decrease and microstructural degradation, which may increase the risk of bone fracture and leading to high morbidity. Dipsaci Radix (DR), one typical traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), which has been applied in the treatment of OP with good therapeutic effects and few side effects. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms of DR to treat OP have not been fully elucidated. In this study, we aim to dissect the molecular mechanism of DR in the treatment of OP. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A systems pharmacology approach was employed to comprehensively dissect the action mechanisms of DR for the treatment of OP. KEY FINDINGS: 10 compounds were screened out as the potential active ingredients with excellent biological activity based on in silico ADME (absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion) prediction model. Then, 36 key protein targets of 6 compounds were identified by systems drug targeting model (SysDT) and they were involved in several biological processes, such as osteoclast differentiation, osteoblast differentiation and anti-inflammation. The target-pathway network indicated that targets are mainly mapped in multiple signaling pathways, i.e., MAPK, Tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α), NF-κb and Toll-like receptor pathways. The in vitro results indicated that the compounds ursolic acid and beta-sitosterol effectively inhibited the osteoclast differentiation. SIGNIFICANCE: These results systematically dissected that DR exhibits the therapeutic effects of OP by the regulation of immune system-related pathways, which provide novel perspective to drug development of OP.

A Retrospective cohort study on the risk factors of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) for patients with traumatic fracture at Honghui Hospital.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the risk factors of perioperative deep vein thrombosis (DVT) in patients with traumatic fracture after orthopaedic surgery and their potential diagnostic values in clinical. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study. SETTING: Clinical Laboratory of Honghui Hospital, Xi'an JiaoTong University College of Medicine, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A retrospective cohort study was conducted with surgically treated fracture patients in Honghui Hospital from 1 May 2016 to 31 February 2017. χ2 test, independent sample t test and regression analysis were applied to examine the correlation between perioperative DVT and the factors of preoperative time, fracture sites, D-dimer value and chronic diseases (hypertension, diabetes and coronary disease). RESULTS: 462 patients were enrolled for analysis. The preoperative time of patients with DVT was significantly longer than that of non-DVT patients (7.14±5.51 vs 5.45±3.75) (P<0.01). χ2 test showed the significant differences in the rate of DVT among patients with different fracture sites (P<0.01). By the receiver-operating characteristic curve analysis, the cut-off value of preoperative D-dimer and postoperative D-dimer in diagnosing perioperative DVT was 4.01 µg/mL and 5.03 µg/mL, respectively. Area under the curve was 0.593 (95% CI 0.533 to 0.652) and 0.728 (95% CI 0.672 to 0.780), respectively. The sensitivity and specificity of preoperative D-dimer for DVT diagnosis were 71.30% and 44.83%, and as for postoperative D-dimer were 63.90% and 70.51%. CONCLUSIONS: Fracture site was correlated to the incidence of DVT; prolonged preoperative time and increased D-dimer value were independent risk factors for DVT in patients with lower extremity traumatic fractures.