Improvement of Panax notoginseng saponin accumulation triggered by methyl jasmonate under arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi.

Panax notoginseng is a highly valued perennial medicinal herb plant in Yunnan Province, China, and the taproots are the main medicinal parts that are rich in active substances of P. notoginseng saponins. The main purpose of this study is to uncover the physiological and molecular mechanism of Panax notoginseng saponin accumulation triggered by methyl jasmonate (MeJA) under arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) by determining physiological indices, high-throughput sequencing and correlation analysis. Physiological results showed that the biomass and saponin contents of P. notoginseng, the concentrations of jasmonic acids (JAs) and the key enzyme activities involved in notoginsenoside biosynthesis significantly increased under AMF or MeJA, but the interactive treatment of AMF and MeJA weakened the effect of AMF, suggesting that a high concentration of endogenous JA have inhibitory effect. Transcriptome sequencing results indicated that differential expressed genes (DEGs) involved in notoginsenoside and JA biosynthesis were significantly enriched in response to AMF induction, e.g., upregulated genes of diphosphocytidyl-2-C-methyl-d-erythritol kinases (ISPEs), cytochrome P450 monooxygenases (CYP450s)_and glycosyltransferases (GTs), while treatments AMF-MeJA and salicylhydroxamic acid (SHAM) decreased the abundance of these DEGs. Interestingly, a high correlation presented between any two of saponin contents, key enzyme activities and expression levels of DEGs. Taken together, the inoculation of AMF can improve the growth and saponin accumulation of P. notoginseng by strengthening the activities of key enzymes and the expression levels of encoding genes, in which the JA regulatory pathway is a key link. This study provides references for implementing ecological planting of P. notoginseng, improving saponin accumulation and illustrating the biosynthesis mechanism.

Comprehensive Analysis of 34 Edible Flowers by the Determination of Nutritional Composition and Antioxidant Capacity Planted in Yunnan Province China.

The main purpose of this study was to reveal the nutritional value and antioxidant activity of 34 edible flowers that grew in Yunnan Province, China, through a comprehensive assessment of their nutritional composition and antioxidant indices. The results showed that sample A3 of Asteraceae flowers had the highest total flavonoid content, with a value of 8.53%, and the maximum contents of vitamin C and reducing sugars were from Rosaceae sample R1 and Gentianaceae sample G3, with values of 143.80 mg/100 g and 7.82%, respectively. Samples R2 and R3 of Rosaceae were the top two flowers in terms of comprehensive nutritional quality. In addition, the antioxidant capacity of Rosaceae samples was evidently better than that of three others, in which Sample R1 had the maximum values in hydroxyl radical (·OH) scavenging and superoxide anion radical (·O2-) scavenging rates, and samples R2 and R3 showed a high total antioxidant capacity and 2,2-diphenyl-1-pyridylhydrazine (DPPH) scavenging rate, respectively. Taken together, there were significant differences in the nutrient contents and antioxidant properties of these 34 flowers, and the comprehensive quality of Rosaceae samples was generally better than the other three families. This study provides references for 34 edible flowers to be used as dietary supplements and important sources of natural antioxidants.

Protective effect and mechanism of Polygonatum kingianum against hypoxia-induced injury.

Background: Hypoxia is an essential cause of fatigue and aging, and is associated with the occurrence and development of many diseases. Polygonatum kingianum (PK) is a deficiency-nourishing Chinese herbal medicine utilized as both medicine and food, and it has long been used to ameliorate human conditions associated with fatigue and aging over 2000 years in China. PK is an important genuine-medicinal-materials cultivated in Yunnan, China, and is used by the Bai, Wa, and Zhuang nationalities as a traditional medicine for enhancing immunity, anti-fatigue, and anti-aging, while the preventive effect of PK on hypoxia-induced injury and the underlying mechanism are indefinite. Aim of the study: The present study aimed to evaluate the anti-hypoxia efficacy and understand the corresponding mechanism of PK water extract. Materials and methods: The main active ingredients and targets of PK were predicted using network pharmacology, and the anti-hypoxia activities of Gracillin and Liquiritigenin were verified by in vitro experiments. The pharmacodynamic experiments were conducted to evaluate the major signal pathways of PK for detecting anti-hypoxia activity. Results: Fifty active ingredients and 371 potential targets were screened by network pharmacology, then, we confirmed that Gracillin and Liquiritigenin were the main active components of PK to exert anti-hypoxia effect in vitro. The pharmacodynamic experiments revealed that PK enhanced the extension rate of the survival time (ERST) and regulated the targets-related biochemical parameters of rats under hypoxia, showing significant anti-hypoxia effects on rats. Conclusion: The network pharmacology results suggested that PK exerts its anti-hypoxia effect through a multi-component and multi-target manner. Simultaneously, we also observed that Gracillin (saponins) and Liquiritigenin (flavonoids) are the main active components of PK to play a role in anti-hypoxia. The anti-hypoxia effect of PK could be associated with scavenging excess free radicals, maintaining the activities of antioxidant enzymes, and inhibiting oxidative stress due to lipid peroxidation. These findings provide insight into the Polygonatum kingianum as promising medicines or healthcare products for preventing and treating hypoxia.

Inspiratory muscle training improves cardiopulmonary function in patients after transcatheter aortic valve replacement: a randomized clinical trial.

AIMS: Inspiratory muscle training (IMT) can increase the strength or endurance of the diaphragm and accessory muscles of inspiration, yet there is no evidence that endorses the role of IMT in patients of transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). This study for the first time tested the effects of IMT plus usual cardiac rehabilitation (CR) function in patients after TAVR. METHODS AND RESULTS: A double-blinded, randomized controlled, single-centre clinical trial was undertaken. Participants who had a confirmed diagnosis of valve heart disease and were clinically stable after TAVR were recruited and received a CR programme during the hospital stay. A total of 96 patients were recruited and randomly assigned to the IMT + CR group (n = 48) or the CR group (n = 48) in a 1:1 ratio. The group difference in the primary outcome, the 6-min walk distance at the discharge of the hospital, significantly favoured the IMT + CR group (mean difference -33.52, 95% CI: -64.42 to -2.62, P = 0.034). The significant difference was maintained at the 1-month and 3-month follow-ups (mean difference: 41.51, 95% CI: 1.82-81.21, P = 0.041). In addition, the mean hospital stays of subjects in the IMT + CR group was 11 days, which was significantly shorter than the 12.5 days in the CR group (P = 0.016). Sensitivity analysis using per-protocol analysis supported these findings. No adverse treatment-related events were reported. CONCLUSION: Compared with usual CR, IMT plus CR can effectively improve exercise endurance, pulmonary ventilation function, and inspiratory muscle strength in patients after TAVR and shorten the length of hospital stay.

A Panax notoginseng phosphate transporter, PnPht1;3, greatly contributes to phosphate and arsenate uptake.

The crisis of arsenic (As) accumulation in rhizomes threatens the quality and safety of Panax notoginseng (Burk.) F.H. Chen, which is a well-known traditional Chinese herb with a long clinical history. The uptake of arsenate (AsV) could be suppressed by supplying phosphate (Pi), in which Pi transporters play important roles in the uptake of Pi and AsV. Herein, the P . notoginseng Pi transporter-encoding gene PnPht1;3 was identified and characterised under Pi deficiency and AsV exposure. In this study, the open reading frame (ORF) of PnPht1;3 was cloned according to RNA-seq and encoded 545 amino acids. The relative expression levels revealed that PnPht1;3 was significantly upregulated under phosphate deficiency and AsV exposure. Heterologous expression in Saccharomyces cerevisiae MB192 demonstrated that PnPht1;3 performed optimally in complementing the yeast Pi-transport defect and accumulated more As in the cells. Combined with the subcellular localisation prediction, it was concluded that PnPht1;3 encodes a functional plasma membrane-localised transporter protein that mediates putative high-affinity Pi/H+ symport activity and enhances the uptake of Pi and AsV. Therefore, a better understanding of the roles of the P . notoginseng Pi transporter could provide new insight for solving As accumulation in medicinal plants.

Polysaccharides from Polygonatum kingianum improve glucose and lipid metabolism in rats fed a high fat diet.

OBJECTIVE: Polygonatum kingianum is a traditional Chinese medicine commonly used to treat diabetes and hyperlipidemia. Polysaccharides from Polygonatum kingianum could regulate glucose and lipid metabolism in high-fat diet (HFD) rats. METHODS: The gel permeation chromatography (GPC), liquid chromatography (HPLC) and chemical analysis were used to determine the molecular weight, monosaccharide composition, protein, polysaccharide and uronic acid content of the polysaccharide from Polygonatum kingianum, respectively. Total (PS) and high molecular weight (PSF) polysaccharides (> 100 KDa) were isolated and treated HFD rats for a 14-week period. TC, TG contents in blood samples were measured every two weeks, and HDL-C, LDL-C was measured at 12 and 14 weeks evaluating of blood lipids regulation activity of polysaccharide. The stool samples were used for 16S rDNA V4 highly variable region measurement method to regulate the role of polysaccharide in the intestinal microflora. The content of short chain fatty acid (SCFAs) in faeces was determined by gas chromatography (GC) to investigate the effect of polysaccharides on the content of SCFAs in the intestinal tract of rats. The expression of tight junction protein ZO-1 and occludin of intestinal tissue, and detection of the key protein expression in the LPS-TLR4/NFκB signaling pathway were detected by Western blot technique. RESULTS: We found that PS and PSF improved both diabetic symptoms and lipid metabolism. PS and PSF also modulated the gut microbiota composition, abundance and diversity of HFD rats, increased the relative abundance of short chain fatty acid (SCFA) producing bacteria and increased SCFA production, reduced intestinal permeability, relieved gastrointestinal inflammation, and improved lipid metabolism. CONCLUSION: Polygonatum kingianum polysaccharides regulated the abundance and diversity of the intestinal microbial community through increasing the relative abundance of SCFA-producing bacteria. This promotes recovery of the intestinal permeability barrier, inhibits LPS entry into the circulation, alleviates inflammation, and prevents glucose and lipid metabolic disorders.