Seaweed metabolomics: A review on its nutrients, bioactive compounds and changes in climate change.

Seaweed, an important food resource in several Asian countries, contains various metabolites, including sugars, organic acids, and amino acids; however, their content is affected by prevailing environmental conditions. This review discusses seaweed metabolomics, especially the distribution of primary and functional secondary metabolites (e.g., carotenoids, polyphenols) in seaweed. Additionally, the effects of global warming on seaweed metabolite profile changes are discussed. For example, high temperatures can increase amino acid levels in seaweeds. Overall, understanding the effects of global warming on seaweed metabolite profiles can be useful for evaluating the nutritional composition of seaweeds as food. This review provides an overview of recent applications of metabolomics in seaweed research as well as a perspective on the nutrient content and cultivation of seaweeds under climate change scenarios.

MIF1 and MIF2 Myostatin Peptide Inhibitors as Potent Muscle Mass Regulators.

The use of peptides as drugs has progressed over time and continues to evolve as treatment paradigms change and new drugs are developed. Myostatin (MSTN) inhibition therapy has shown great promise for the treatment of muscle wasting diseases. Here, we report the MSTN-derived novel peptides MIF1 (10-mer) and MIF2 (10-mer) not only enhance myogenesis by inhibiting MSTN and inducing myogenic-related markers but also reduce adipogenic proliferation and differentiation by suppressing the expression of adipogenic markers. MIF1 and MIF2 were designed based on in silico interaction studies between MSTN and its receptor, activin type IIB receptor (ACVRIIB), and fibromodulin (FMOD). Of the different modifications of MIF1 and MIF2 examined, Ac-MIF1 and Ac-MIF2-NH2 significantly enhanced cell proliferation and differentiation as compared with non-modified peptides. Mice pretreated with Ac-MIF1 or Ac-MIF2-NH2 prior to cardiotoxin-induced muscle injury showed more muscle regeneration than non-pretreated controls, which was attributed to the induction of myogenic genes and reduced MSTN expression. These findings imply that Ac-MIF1 and Ac-MIF2-NH2 might be valuable therapeutic agents for the treatment of muscle-related diseases.

Transcriptomic analysis of effects of 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) and ethylene treatment on kiwifruit (Actinidia chinensis) ripening.

Ethylene (ET) is a gaseous phytohormone with a crucial role in the ripening of many fruits, including kiwifruit (Actinidia spp.). Meanwhile, treatment with 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP), an artificial ET inhibitor delays the ripening of kiwifruit. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of ET and 1-MCP application during time-course storage of kiwifruit. In addition, we aimed to elucidate the molecular details underlying ET-mediated ripening process in kiwifruit. For this purpose, we conducted a time-course transcriptomic analysis to determine target genes of the ET-mediated maturation process in kiwifruit during storage. Thousands of genes were identified to be dynamically changed during storage and clustered into 20 groups based on the similarity of their expression patterns. Gene ontology analysis using the list of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in 1-MCP-treated kiwifruit revealed that the identified DEGs were significantly enriched in the processes of photosynthesis metabolism and cell wall composition throughout the ripening process. Meanwhile, ET treatment rapidly triggered secondary metabolisms related to the ripening process, phenylpropanoid (e.g. lignin) metabolism, and the biosynthesis of amino acids (e.g. Phe, Cys) in kiwifruit. It was demonstrated that ET biosynthesis and signaling genes were oppositely affected by ET and 1-MCP treatment during ripening. Furthermore, we identified a ET transcription factor, AcEIL (Acc32482) which is oppositely responsive by ET and 1-MCP treatment during early ripening, potentially one of key signaling factor of ET- or 1-MCP-mediated physiological changes. Therefore, this transcriptomic study unveiled the molecular targets of ET and its antagonist, 1-MCP, in kiwifruit during ripening. Our results provide a useful foundation for understanding the molecular details underlying the ripening process in kiwifruit.

Nanoparticle-Based Drugs: A Potential Armamentarium of Effective Anti-Cancer Therapies.

BACKGROUND: Cancer is a foremost cause of mortality worldwide. Available treatments are non-specific and cannot cross biological barriers, which have restricted their usages. Furthermore, the side effects of existing treatments have promoted the exploration of nanotechnological approaches to achieve site-specific drug delivery. The diminutive sizes of nanoparticles, and hence, their large surface to volume ratios, means they are inherently more efficient at delivering drugs to specific tumor sites. This review highlights different approaches to cancer therapy, and the importance of nanoparticles in cancer therapy. Applications and limitations of different types of nanomedicines used for cancer imaging and treatment are discussed. METHODS: We undertook extensive literature search of bibliographic databases (e.g. PubMed, Google Scholar, Medline, Web of Science etc.) using different keywords and combination of keywords to retrieve the relevant information. RESULTS: This review provides overview of cancer and need for nanoparticle-based therapies for their treatment, and deliberates the different types of nanomaterials used as nanomedicines for cancer imaging and treatment in addition to their applications and limitations. Furthermore, applications of nanoparticles in modern cancer therapies and research strategies have been explored to overcome cancer. CONCLUSION: Nanotechnology has provided a lot of novel therapeutics for the diagnosis and treatment of different cancers over the last 2-3 decades. However, there are few limitations of nanotechnological based anti-cancer therapies. Nanotechnology is enabling novel, specialized treatments for cancer; this will be a high-impact area of nanomedicine yielding more medical advancements with the next 10 years.

Methyl jasmolate treated buckwheat sprout powder enhances glucose metabolism by potentiating hepatic insulin signaling in estrogen-deficient rats.

OBJECTIVES: Methyl jasmolate (MeJA)-treated vegetables produce higher concentrations of various bioactive compounds. We investigated whether long-term oral consumption of MeJA-treated and untreated buckwheat sprout powder improves energy, glucose, lipid, and bone metabolism induced by estrogen deficiency in ovariectomized (OVX) rats fed high-fat diets, and explored the mechanisms involved. METHODS: OVX rats were divided into four groups and fed high-fat diets supplemented with 3% dextrin (OVX-control), buckwheat sprout powder (BWS), or MeJA-treated buckwheat sprout powder (MJ-BWS) for 12 wk. Sham rats without estrogen deficiency had a control diet as a normal-control. RESULTS: MeJA-treatment increased total polyphenols and flavonoids by about 1.6 fold and isoorientin, orientin, rutin, and vitexin were elevated by about 18% in buckwheat. After 12 wk, OVX rats exhibited increased weight gain, fat mass, skin temperature, hyperglycemia, and decreased bone mineral density (BMD) compared to sham rats. BWS prevented the increase of skin temperature and decrease of femur BMD, but did not improve energy glucose homeostasis as much as MJ-BWS. MJ-BWS prevented increases in body weight and fat mass. Energy expenditure was lowest in OVX-control, followed by BWS, MJ-BWS, and normal-control. Furthermore, MJ-BWS exhibited greater improvements in glucose and insulin tolerance than OVX-control and BWS. Phosphorylation of hepatic Akt and AMPK was potentiated, in ascending order of OVX-control, BWS, MJ-BWS, and normal-control, whereas PEPCK expression was decreased. CONCLUSIONS: MJ-BWS prevented and ameliorated the disturbances in energy and glucose metabolism in estrogen-deficient animals better than BWS. Therefore, besides flavonoids in BWS, other components such as phytoalexins produced in MJ-BWS during MeJA-treatment might play a crucial role in the improvement.

Phenolic composition, antioxidant activity and anti-adipogenic effect of hot water extract from safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) seed.

This study was to evaluate the phenolic content and composition of Carthamus tinctorius L. seed extract (CSE) and to further assess its antioxidant and anti-adipogenic activities using various radical scavenging systems and 3T3-L1 cells. Our results show that the total phenolic and flavonoid contents of CSE were 126.0 ± 2.4 mg GAE/g and 62.2 ± 1.9 mg QE/g, respectively. The major phenolic compounds in CSE was (-)-epigallocatechin (109.62 mg/g), with a 4-hydroxy benzhydrazide derivative and gallocatechin present at 18.28 mg/g and 17.02 mg/g, respectively. CSE exhibited remarkable radical scavenging activities, FRAP (ferric reducing antioxidant power) and reducing power in a dose-dependent manner. Moreover, the oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) value of CSE (0.1 mg/mL) was 62.9 ± 4.7 µM TE (trolox equivalent)/g. During adipogenesis, CSE significantly inhibited fat accumulation in 3T3-L1 cells compared with control cells. Overall, these results indicate that CSE might be a valuable source of bioactive compounds that impart functional food and natural antioxidant properties.