A review of novel research technology to explore the mystery of traditional Chinese medicine: Terahertz.

During the 2022 Annual National Terahertz Biophysics Conference, the hypothesis was proposed that bio frequency electromagnetic fields sensitive points, akin to acupuncture points, exist in the human body. This development has prompted numerous researchers to apply terahertz technology to the field of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). In recent years, terahertz technology has achieved notable progress in the field of TCM, particularly concerning the meridian-collateral system. This review systematically presents the advancements in terahertz technology and its implications on TCM theory from a biophysical perspective. Additionally, it summarizes the utilization of terahertz waves in elucidating aspects of TCM, particularly focusing on the scientific connotation of Qi, the theoretical foundation of the meridian-collateral system, and moxibustion in diagnosing and treating diseases. We aimed to explore the innovative applications and distinct advantages of terahertz technology in TCM and its feasibility as a pioneering technological tool for the modernization of TCM.

CircPACRGL promoted cell proliferation, migration and invasion as well as inhibited cell apoptosis in colorectal cancer via regulation of the miR-330-3p/CNBP axis.

CircRNAs are a member of noncoding RNAs and have been verified to play an important regulatory role in cancers. In CRC, the regulatory mechanisms of various circRNAs have not been elucidated. The expression of circPACRGL and miR-330-3p was detected with qRT-PCR. The protein expression of CDK4, MMP-9, Bcl-2, Bax, cellular nucleic acid-binding protein (CNBP) and ß-actin was measured with western blot. Cell proliferation was analyzed using MTT assay, colony formation assay, and EDU assay. Cell apoptosis was detected using flow cytometry. Cell migration and invasion were measured with wound healing and transwell invasion assay. Luciferase reporter assay and RIP assay was used to determine the relationship of among miR-330-3p, circPACRGL and CNBP in CRC cells. In this study, we found that circPACRGL and CNBP expressed high and miR-330-3p expressed low in CRC tissues and cells. Functional experiments showed that inhibition of circPACRGL reduced cell proliferation, migration and invasion in CRC. In addition, knockdown of circPACRGL contributed to cell apoptosis in CRC. Dual-luciferase report assay determined that circPACRGL was a miR-330-3p sponge molecular and CNBP was a target of miR-330-3p. Reversed experiments showed that the effects of sh-circPACRGL transfection on CRC cells were rescued by up-regulating CNBP expression. In this study, we for the first time found a novel regulatory network of circPACRGL in CRC. The results manifested that circPACRGL affected tumor growth by targeting miR-330-3p/CNBP axis in CRC, highlighting the potential of circPACRGL as a therapeutic target for colorectal cancer.

The Melastoma dodecandrum genome and the evolution of Myrtales.

Melastomataceae has abundant morphological diversity with high economic and ornamental merit in Myrtales. The phylogenetic position of Myrtales is still contested. Here, we report the chromosome-level genome assembly of Melastoma dodecandrum in Melastomataceae. The assembled genome size is 299.81 Mb with a contig N50 value of 3.00 Mb. Genome evolution analysis indicated that M. dodecandrum, Eucalyptus grandis, and Punica granatum were clustered into a clade of Myrtales and formed a sister group with the ancestor of fabids and malvids. We found that M. dodecandrum experienced four whole-genome polyploidization events: the ancient event was shared with most eudicots, one event was shared with Myrtales, and the other two events were unique to M. dodecandrum. Moreover, we identified MADS-box genes and found that the AP1-like genes expanded, and AP3-like genes might have undergone subfunctionalization. The SUAR63-like genes and AG-like genes showed different expression patterns in stamens, which may be associated with heteranthery. In addition, we found that LAZY1-like genes were involved in the negative regulation of stem branching development, which may be related to its creeping features. Our study sheds new light on the evolution of Melastomataceae and Myrtales, which provides a comprehensive genetic resource for future research.

Ultrafast nonequilibrium dynamic process of separate electrons and holes during exciton formation in few-layer tungsten disulfide.

Femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy has been employed to unravel separate initial nonequilibrium dynamic processes of photo-injected electrons and holes during the formation process of the lowest excitons at the K-valley in few-layer tungsten disulfide. Charge carrier thermalization and cooling, as well as concomitant many-body effects on the exciton resonances, are distinguished. The thermalization of holes is observed to be faster than that of electrons. Both of them proceed predominantly via carrier-carrier scattering, as evidenced by the observed dependence of the thermalization time on pump fluences. The fluence dependent time constants also suggest that the subsequent cooling for electrons is probably dominated by acoustic phonons, whereas for holes it is mostly controlled by LO phonons. An extremely fast red- and blue-shift crossover followed by a slow blue-shift of exciton resonance was observed in the temporal evolution of exciton resonances by resonant exciton A excitation. The rapid red-shift could be due to the strong screening of the Coulomb interaction between quasi-free charge carriers in electron-hole plasma. The subsequent slow blue-shift is the net result of the competition among many-body effects in the hot-exciton cooling process. Our findings elucidate the carrier-selective ultrafast dynamics and their many-body effects, underpinning new possibilities for developing optoelectronic devices based on transport properties of a single type of carrier.

The evolutionary origin and domestication history of goldfish (Carassius auratus).

Goldfish have been subjected to over 1,000 y of intensive domestication and selective breeding. In this report, we describe a high-quality goldfish genome (2n = 100), anchoring 95.75% of contigs into 50 pseudochromosomes. Comparative genomics enabled us to disentangle the two subgenomes that resulted from an ancient hybridization event. Resequencing 185 representative goldfish variants and 16 wild crucian carp revealed the origin of goldfish and identified genomic regions that have been shaped by selective sweeps linked to its domestication. Our comprehensive collection of goldfish varieties enabled us to associate genetic variations with a number of well-known anatomical features, including features that distinguish traditional goldfish clades. Additionally, we identified a tyrosine-protein kinase receptor as a candidate causal gene for the first well-known case of Mendelian inheritance in goldfish-the transparent mutant. The goldfish genome and diversity data offer unique resources to make goldfish a promising model for functional genomics, as well as domestication.

Ultrafast carrier relaxation dynamics of photoexcited GaAs and GaAs/AlGaAs nanowire array.

Femtosecond optical pump-probe spectroscopy is employed to elucidate the ultrafast carrier nonradiative relaxation dynamics of bare GaAs and a core-shell GaAs/AlGaAs semiconductor nanowire array. Different from the single nanowire conventionally used for the study of ultrafast dynamics, a simple spin coating and peeling off method was performed to prepare transparent organic films containing a vertical oriented nanowire array for transient absorption measurement. The transient experiment provides the direct observation of carrier thermalization, carrier cooling, thermal dissipation and band-gap energy evolutions along with the carrier relaxations. Carrier thermalization occurs within sub-0.5 ps and proceeds almost independently on the AlGaAs-coating, while the time constants of carrier cooling and thermal dissipation are increased by an order of magnitude due to the AlGaAs-coating effect. The concomitant band-gap evolutions in GaAs and GaAs/AlGaAs include an initial rapid red-shift in thermalization period, followed by a slow blue and/or red shift in carrier cooling, and then by an even slower blue shift in thermal dissipation. The evolution is explained by the competition of band-gap renormalization, plasma screening and band-filling. These findings are significant for understanding the basic physics of carrier scattering, and also for the development of flexible optoelectronic devices.

Ultrafast acoustic vibrations of Au-Ag nanoparticles with varying elongated structures.

Acoustic vibrations of Au and Ag elongated nano-objects with original morphologies, from Ag-Ag homodimers to Au@Ag-Ag heterodimers and Au@Ag eccentric core-shell spheroids, have been experimentally investigated by ultrafast time-resolved optical spectroscopy. Their frequencies, obtained by the analysis of time-dependent transient absorption changes, are compared with the results obtained from finite element modeling (FEM) numerical computations, which allow assignment of the detected oscillating signals to fundamental radial and extensional modes. FEM was further used to analyze the effects of morphology and composition on the vibrational dynamics. FEM computations indicate that (1) the central distance between particles forming the nanodimers has profound effects on the extensional mode frequencies and a negligible influence on the radial mode ones, in analogy with the case of monometallic nanorods, (2) coating Au with Ag also has a strong mass-loading-like effect on the dimer and core-shell stretching mode frequency, while (3) its influence on the radial breathing mode is smaller and analogous to the non-monotonic frequency dependence on the Au fraction previously observed in isotropic bimetallic spheres. These findings are significant for developing a predictive understanding of nanostructure mechanical properties and for designing new mechanical nanoresonators.

Characterization of the complete chloroplast genome sequence of Blastus cochinchinensis (Melastomataceae).

Blastus Lour. belongs to tribe Sonerileae (Melastomataceae), comprising about 18 species worldwide. Herein, we presented, assembled, and annotated the first complete chloroplast genome of Blastus (B. cochinchinensis). The complete chloroplast genome (cp) size of B. cochinchinensis was 156,005 bp in length, containing a pair of 26,812 bp inverted repeat (IR) regions, which were separated by a large single-copy region (LSC) 85,926 bp and a small single-copy (SSC) region 16,455 bp. The overall GC content of the genome was 37.0%. The whole genome contained 129 unique genes, including 81 protein-coding genes, 37 tRNA genes, and 8 rRNA genes. The phylogenetic analysis showed that B. cochinchinens was sister to Barthea barthei. The present study provided B. cochinchinensis genomic information that may be found useful in conservation and molecular phylogenetic studies on Blastus.

Gynostemma pentaphyllum saponins attenuate inflammation in vitro and in vivo by inhibition of NF-κB and STAT3 signaling.

Recent advances in the development of anti-inflammatory agents have improved their therapeutic outcome in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), however, the presence of side effects and limited effectiveness hinder their widespread use. Therefore, novel compounds with strong anti-inflammatory efficacy are still required. In this study, we investigated the anti-inflammatory effect and potential mechanisms of Gynostemma pentaphyllum (Thunb.) Makino saponins (GpS), a major component of the herbal medicine widely used in Asian countries. In in vitro studies, we demonstrated that GpS dose dependently suppressed activation of macrophages, one of the main effectors in IBD. GpS also suppressed cytokine production and the activation of NF-κB and STAT3 signaling in lipopolysaccharide-induced macrophages, without affecting their viability. Further in vivo studies demonstrated that GpS could ameliorate the weight loss, increased disease activity index, colon shortening and histological damage associated with dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)-induced colitis in mice. In agreement with results from our in vitro experiments, GpS suppressed cytokine production and activation of NF-κB and STAT3 signaling in the colons of DSS-induced mice. In this study, we present for the first time, evidence of the therapeutic effect of GpS in IBD, highlighting its potential as an effective therapeutic against the disease.

Magnesium-Mediated Carbon-Carbon Bond Formation in Aqueous Media: Barbier-Grignard Allylation and Pinacol Coupling of Aldehydes.

Magnesium-mediated Barbier-Grignard type alkylation of aldehydes with alkyl halides was studied in aqueous media. The reaction of aromatic aldehydes with allyl halides is highly effective with either THF or water as the reaction solvent but poor in a mixture of THF/water. It was found that the magnesium-mediated allylation of aldehydes with allyl bromide and iodide proceeds effectively in aqueous 0.1 N HCl or 0.1 N NH(4)Cl. Aromatic aldehydes reacted chemoselectively in the presence of aliphatic aldehydes. An exclusive selectivity was also observed when both aliphatic and aromatic aldehyde functionalities are present in the same molecule. In the absence of allyl halides, aldehydes and ketones reacted with magnesium in aqueous 0.1 N NH(4)Cl to form the corresponding pinacol coupling products in high yields. The effectiveness of the pinacol reaction was strongly influenced by the steric environment surrounding the carbonyl group. Aliphatic aldehydes and simple alkyl halides appear inert under the reaction conditions for either alkylation or the pinacol coupling reaction.