[Characteristics of Cadmium Concentration and Transport of Pueraria thornsonii in Farmland with Different Cadmium Pollution Degrees].

This study aimed to elucidate the cadmium (Cd) concentration and transport characteristics of Pueraria thornsonii in farmland with different Cd pollution degrees, so as to provide a reference basis for phytoremediation of Cd-contaminated farmland. The multi-point experiments in farmland with different Cd pollution degrees[ω(Cd) 0.32-38.08 mg·kg-1] were conducted, and the biomass (dry weight), Cd content, accumulation, concentration, and transport of Cd in P. thornsonii tissues under the main growing period were assessed. According to the results, for P. thornsonii, the tuber dry weight ranged from 5.04 to 11.98 t·hm-2, biomass ranged from 13.21 to 29.07 t·hm-2, and Cd accumulation ranged from 15.74 to 106.03 g·hm-2in the study area. The pattern of Cd uptake by P. thornsonii showed that the main vine>leaf>lateral branches>basal part of sti>tuber. The Cd content in P. thornsonii tissues considerably increased with soil Cd content (P<0.05), whereas the biomass decreased significantly (P<0.05). The Cd concentration and transport factor of aboveground parts in P. thornsonii showed a trend of initially falling, then increasing and decreasing again, whereas the Cd enrichment and transport coefficient of tubers gradually decreased. Correlation analysis revealed that the amount of Cd in the soil was a major predictor of Cd accumulation in P. thornsonii. Under light to moderate Cd contamination, the commercial portion of P. thornsonii (arrowroot)[ω(Cd) 0.03-0.22 mg·kg-1] was less than the standard limit for medicinal plants (≤ 0.30 mg·kg-1). In P. thornsonii from moderately contaminated areas, the Cd concentration and transport factor of aboveground parts were 2.43-7.97 and 3.02-9.81, respectively. This indicates that P. thornsonii is a prospective plant ideal for remediating Cd-contaminated soil because of its high capacity to transfer and enrich Cd.

Ancient genomes reveal tropical bovid species in the Tibetan Plateau contributed to the prevalence of hunting game until the late Neolithic.

Local wild bovids have been determined to be important prey on the northeastern Tibetan Plateau (NETP), where hunting game was a major subsistence strategy until the late Neolithic, when farming lifestyles dominated in the neighboring Loess Plateau. However, the species affiliation and population ecology of these prehistoric wild bovids in the prehistoric NETP remain unknown. Ancient DNA (aDNA) analysis is highly informative in decoding this puzzle. Here, we applied aDNA analysis to fragmented bovid and rhinoceros specimens dating ∼5,200 y B.P. from the Neolithic site of Shannashuzha located in the marginal area of the NETP. Utilizing both whole genomes and mitochondrial DNA, our results demonstrate that the range of the present-day tropical gaur (Bos gaurus) extended as far north as the margins of the NETP during the late Neolithic from ∼29°N to ∼34°N. Furthermore, comparative analysis with zooarchaeological and paleoclimatic evidence indicated that a high summer temperature in the late Neolithic might have facilitated the northward expansion of tropical animals (at least gaur and Sumatran-like rhinoceros) to the NETP. This enriched the diversity of wildlife, thus providing abundant hunting resources for humans and facilitating the exploration of the Tibetan Plateau as one of the last habitats for hunting game in East Asia.

Ameliorative effect of berberine on renal damage in rats with diabetes induced by high-fat diet and streptozotocin.

Berberine (BBR) is one of the main constituents in Rhizoma coptidis and it has widely been used for the treatment of diabetic nephropathy. The aims of the study were to investigate the effects and mechanism of action of berberine on renal damage in diabetic rats. Diabetes and hyperglycaemia were induced in rats by a high-fat diet and intraperitoneal injection of 40 mg/kg streptozotocin (STZ). Rats were randomly divided into 5 groups, such as i) control rats, ii) untreated diabetic rats iii) 250 mg/kg metformin-treated, iv and v) 100 and 200 mg/kg berberine-treated diabetic rats and treated separately for 8 weeks. The fasting blood glucose, insulin, total cholesterol, triglyceride, glycosylated hemoglobin were measured in rats. Kidneys were isolated at the end of the treatment for histology, Western blot analysis and estimation of malonaldehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and renal advanced glycation endproducts (AGEs). The results revealed that berberine significantly decreased fasting blood glucose, insulin levels, total cholesterol, triglyceride levels, urinary protein excretion, serum creatinine (Scr) and blood urea nitrogen (BUN) in diabetic rats. The histological examinations revealed amelioration of diabetes-induced glomerular pathological changes following treatment with berberine. In addition, the protein expressions of nephrin and podocin were significantly increased. It seems likely that in rats berberine exerts an ameliorative effect on renal damage in diabetes induced by high-fat diet and streptozotocin. The possible mechanisms for the renoprotective effects of berberine may be related to inhibition of glycosylation and improvement of antioxidation that in turn upregulate the expressions of renal nephrin and podocin.

[Effect of shexiang baoxin pill in alleviating myocardial fibrosis in spontaneous hypertensive rats].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects and mechanisms of Shexiang Baoxin Pill (SBP) on myocardial fibrosis in spontaneous hypertensive rats (SHR). METHODS: SHR of 12 weeks old were divided into the SBP group, the control group (treated with benazepril) and the model control group. The effects on such indexes as systolic blood pressure (SBP), left ventricular mass (LVM), left ventricular mass index (LVMI), content of myocardial collagen (MC) in left ventricle, extracellular matrix fibronectin (FN), laminin (LN), cardiac fibroblast (cFb) and transforming growth factor-beta1 (TGF-beta1) were determined after 12 weeks of treatment. RESULTS: SBP had no marked pressure depressive effect, but had the effect similar to that of benazepril in reducing the level of LVM, LVMI and content of MC (P < 0.05), as well as the content of LN, FN in myocardium, cFb count and TGF-beta1 expression (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: SBP can prevent and treat myocardial fibrosis, whose action is independent of its hypotensive effect. The mechanism may be associated with such factors as the decrease of MC synthesis in left ventricle and the deposition of extracellular matrix.