Waterlogging in soil restricts the growth of Gleditsia sinensis seedlings and inhibits the accumulation of lignans and phenolic acids in thorns.

Gleditsia sinensis, commonly known as Chinese Zaojiao, has important economic value and medicinal compounds in its fruits and thorns, making it widely cultivated artificially in China. However, the available literature on the impact of waterlogging on the growth of G. sinensis seedlings and the accumulation of metabolite compounds in its thorns is limited. To address this knowledge gap, G. sinensis seedlings were planted in soil supplemented with pindstrup substrate, which enhances the water-holding capacity of the soil. The analyses of morphological traits and nutrient elements in one-year-old G. sinensis seedlings grown naturally under ambient conditions and metabolite accumulation in its thorns were conducted. The results showed that the waterlogged soil significantly diminished the height, fresh weight, and dry weight of seedling roots and stems (P < 0.05). Furthermore, waterlogging hindered the uptake of iron (Fe) and manganese (Mn), as well as the transport of potassium (K). The identified metabolites within the thorns were categorized into 16 distinct groups. Relative to the control soil, fatty acids and derivatives were the most down-regulated metabolites in the waterlogged soil, accounting for 40.58% of the total metabolites, followed by lignans (38.71%), phenolic acids (34.48%), saccharides and alcohols (34.15%), steroids (16.67%), alkaloids (12.24%), flavonoids (9.28%), and glycerophospholipids (7.41%). Conversely, nucleotides and derivatives experienced the greatest up-regulation in the waterlogged soil, accounting for 50.00% of the total metabolites. In conclusion, waterlogging negatively impacted the growth of G. sinensis seedlings and inhibited the accumulation of metabolites. Hence, when considering the accumulation of secondary metabolites such as lignans and phenolic acids, appropriate management of soil moisture levels should be taken into account.

[Effect of manual acupuncture at "Sanyinjiao" (SP6) on spermatogenic cells of mice with oligoasthenospermia induced by microwave radiation].

OBJECTIVE: To observe the effect of acupuncture at "Sanyinjiao" (SP6) on sperm motility, testicular B cell lymphoma/leukelia-2 (Bcl-2), Bcl-2 associated X protein (Bax), and Caspase-3 in mice with oligoasthenospermia induced by microwave radiation, so as to explore its underlying mechanisms in improving oligoasthenospermia. METHODS: Male BALB/C mice were randomly divided into control, model and acupuncture groups(n=6 in each group). The oligoasthenospermia model was established by continuous microwave irradiation with frequency of 2 450 MHz and power density of 40 mW/cm2, 1 h daily for 18 days. At the same time, manual acupuncture was applied to the acupuncture group on bilateral "Sanyinjiao" (SP6) for 30 s, once daily for 18 days. Sperm motility including the percentages of progressive motility (PR), non-progressive motility (NP), and PR + NP sperms was detected by computer-assisted sperm analysis, H.E. staining was used to observe the testicular morphology and Johnson score was calculated, the expression levels of Bcl-2, Bax and Caspase-3 in testis were detected by immunofluorescence. RESULTS: Compared with the control group, the percentages of PR sperms, NP sperms, PR+NP sperms, Johnson score, and expression level of Bcl-2 were significantly decreased (P<0.05), while the expression levels of Bax and Caspase-3 were increased (P<0.05) in the model group. Compared with the model group, the percentages of PR sperms, PR+NP sperms, Johnson score, and expression level of Bcl-2 were significantly increased (P<0.05), while the expression levels of Bax and Caspase-3 were decreased (P<0.05) in the acupuncture group. Outcomes of H.E. staining showed that the seminiferous tubules became thinner, spermatogenic cells and sperm decreased or even disappeared, and the supporting cells were partially missing in the model group, which was relatively milder in the acupuncture group. CONCLUSION: Manual acupuncture at SP6 can improve sperm motility in oligoasthenospermia mice induced by microwave radiation, which may be related to its effects in down-regulating the expressions of Bax and Caspase-3, increasing expression of Bcl-2 in the testis.

Effect of advanced nursing care on psychological condition in patients with chronic heart failure: A protocol of systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: This study will appraise the effect and safety of advanced nursing care (ANC) on psychological condition (PC) in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF). METHODS: The following databases will be sought from the beginning up to the February 29, 2020: MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, Scopus, the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, the Allied and Complementary Medicine Database, the Chinese Scientific Journal Database, and China National Knowledge Infrastructure. There are not language and publication status limitations related to any electronic databases. In addition, we will also identify conference proceedings, reference lists of included studies, and websites of clinical trials registry. Two reviewers will separately carry out study selection, data extraction, and study quality evaluation. Any inconsistencies will be solved by a third reviewer through discussion. RevMan 5.3 software will be utilized to carry out statistical analysis. RESULTS: This study will comprehensively summarize all potential evidence to systematically address the effects and safety of ANC on PC in patients with CHF. CONCLUSION: The findings of the present study will help to determine whether ANC is effective or not on PC in patients with CHF. STUDY REGISTRATION NUMBER: INPLASY202040077.

Curcumin pretreatment and post-treatment both improve the antioxidative ability of neurons with oxygen-glucose deprivation.

Recent studies have shown that induced expression of endogenous antioxidative enzymes thr-ough activation of the antioxidant response element/nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) pathway may be a neuroprotective strategy. In this study, rat cerebral cortical neurons cultured in vitro were pretreated with 10 µM curcumin or post-treated with 5 µM curcumin, respectively before or after being subjected to oxygen-glucose deprivation and reoxygenation for 24 hours. Both pretreatment and post-treatment resulted in a significant decrease of cell injury as indicated by propidium iodide/Hoechst 33258 staining, a prominent increase of Nrf2 protein expression as indicated by western blot analysis, and a remarkable increase of protein expression and enzyme activity in whole cell lysates of thioredoxin before ischemia, after ischemia, and after reoxygenation. In addition, post-treatment with curcumin inhibited early DNA/RNA oxidation as indicated by immunocytochemistry and increased nuclear Nrf2 protein by inducing nuclear accumulation of Nrf2. These findings suggest that curcumin activates the expression of thioredoxin, an antioxidant protein in the Nrf2 pathway, and protects neurons from death caused by oxygen-glucose deprivation in an in vitro model of ischemia/reperfusion. We speculate that pharmacologic stimulation of antioxidant gene expression may be a promising approach to neuroprotection after cerebral ischemia.

EGCG inhibits CTGF expression via blocking NF-κB activation in cardiac fibroblast.

Connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) has been reported to play an important role in tissue fibrosis and presents a promising therapeutic target for fibrotic diseases. In heart, inappropriate increase in level of CTGF promotes fibroblast proliferation and extracellular matrix (ECM) accumulation, thereby exacerbating cardiac hypertrophy and subsequent failure. Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), the major polyphenol found in green tea, possesses multiple protective effects on the cardiovascular system including cardiac fibrosis. However, the molecular mechanism by which EGCG exerts its anti-fibrotic effects has not been well investigated. In this study, we found that EGCG could significantly reduce collagen synthesis, fibronectin (FN) expression and cell proliferation in rat cardiac fibroblasts stimulated with angiotensinII (AngII). It also ameliorated cardiac fibrosis in rats submitted to abdominal aortic constriction (AAC). Moreover, EGCG attenuated the excessive expression of CTGF induced by AAC or AngII, and reduced the nuclear translocation of NF-κB p65 subunit and degradation of IκB-α. Subsequently, we demonstrated that in cardiac fibroblasts NF-κB inhibition could suppress AngII-induced CTGF expression. Taken together, these findings provide the first evidence that the effect of EGCG against cardiac fibrosis may be attributed to its inhibition on NF-κB activation and subsequent CTGF overexpression, suggesting the therapeutic potential of EGCG on the prevention of cardiac remodeling in patients with pressure overload hypertrophy.

4-hydroxybenzyl alcohol ameliorates cerebral injury in rats by antioxidant action.

4-hydroxybenzyl alcohol (4-HBA), one of the phenolic constituents found in many herbal medicinal plants, exhibits beneficial effects in neurological disorders. In the present study, we evaluated 4-HBA's role in transient cerebral ischemia and its potential mechanism. Pre-treatment with 4-HBA (50,100 mg/kg) significantly reduced the cerebral infarct size and improved the neurological symptoms. Morphological examinations showed 4-HBA reduced the number of degenerated neurons. Oxidative stress was evaluated superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity and malondialdehyde (MDA) level. Anti-oxidative mechanisms were studied by Immunofluorescence staining and western immunoblot analysis. 4-HBA increased the expression of NAD(P)H: quinone oxidoreductase1 (NQO1) and ultimately inhibited oxidative stress. In addition, we evaluated the time course expression of NQO1, which was upregulated in the ischemic brain beginning at 1 h. Taken together, these results suggested that 4-HBA ameliorated cerebral injury in rats, This neuroprotective effect is likely related to its antioxidant activities.

Neuroprotective effect of 4-hydroxybenzyl alcohol against transient focal cerebral ischemia via anti-apoptosis in rats.

4-hydroxybenzyl alcohol (4-HBA), one of the major active phenolic constituents of Gastrodia elata Blume, a very important traditional Chinese medicinal herb, has been shown to be an effective agent against the central and peripheral nervous disorders. In this study, we attempted to explore the possible mechanisms underlying the neuroprotection against transient focal cerebral ischemia by 4-HBA.4-HBA (25, 50 mg/kg) was given 30 min before focal ischemia in rats caused by middle cerebral artery occlusion (1 h of occlusion, 24 h of reperfusion). Under the treatment of 50 mg/kg 4-HBA, total (100.76+/-2.90 mm(3)), cortical (64.91+/-1.46 mm(3)), and sub-cortical (38.77+/-2.78 mm(3)) infarct volumes were significantly decreased in comparison to ischemia-reperfusion values. Neurological evaluation and Nissl-staining of the 4-HBA group were improved significantly compared to the untreated ischemia group. TUNEL-positive cells were reduced significantly in 4-HBA treated group. Results of immunofluorescence staining analysis and Western immunoblot indicated that 4-HBA increased the expression of Bcl-2 and inhibited the activation of caspase-3 ultimately inhibiting apoptosis. These results suggested that 4-HBA ameliorated ischemic injury induced by transient focal cerebral ischemia in rats, and this neuroprotective effect may be partly related to attenuate apoptosis pathway.

Influences of different developmental periods of taurine supplements on synaptic plasticity in hippocampal CA1 area of rats following prenatal and perinatal lead exposure.

BACKGROUND: Previous study has demonstrated that dietary taurine supplement protected rats from impairments of synaptic plasticity induced by postnatal lead exposure. However, little is known about the role of taurine in the presence of prenatal and perinatal lead exposure. We investigated the possible effect of taurine supplement on prenatal and perinatal lead-induced synaptic plasticity deficit and determined developmental periods critical for the effect of taurine. RESULTS: In the present study, taurine was administrated to prenatal and perinatal lead-exposed rats in different developmental periods: from prenatal to weaning (Lead+PW-Tau), from weaning to life (Lead+WL-Tau), and from prenatal to life (Lead+PL-Tau). We examined the input-output (I/O) function, paired-pulse facilitation (PPF) and the long-term potentiation (LTP) of field excitatory postsynaptic potential (fEPSP) in the hippocampal CA1 area of rats on postnatal days 18-25 (P18-25) or days 60-75 (P60-75). We found that (1) on P18-25, taurine had no evident effect on I/O functions and PPF ratios of lead-exposed rats but caused a 12.0% increase in the LTP amplitudes of these animals; (2) on P60-75, taurine significantly elevated lead depressed I/O functions and PPF ratios in Lead+PW-Tau and Lead+PL-Tau rats, but failed in Lead+WL-Tau rats. The amplitudes of LTP of lead-exposed rats were all significantly increased by additional taurine supplement in any developmental period compared with untreated rats. Thus, taurine appeared to have the most effect during the prenatal and lactation periods and its effects on younger rats would not be manifest until the adult life; and (3) the level of lead deposition in hippocampus was evidently reduced by additional treatment of taurine in lead-exposed rats, compared with untreated rats. CONCLUSION: Taurine supplement can protect the adult rats from synaptic plasticity deficits following prenatal and perinatal lead exposure, and the protective effects are critical for the prenatal and lactation periods of lead-exposed rats.

[NF-kappaB tumorigenesis and drug developement].

NF-kappaB, a collective name of dimeric transcription factors, is composed of members of the Rel family proteins that recognize and bind a specific DNA sequence. It is normally sequestered in the cytoplasm of non-stimulated cells by associating with a family of inhibitor proteins called IkappaBs. Exposure of cells to a variety of extra-and intra-cellular stimuli leads to the rapid proteolytic degradation of IkappaBs, which frees NF-kappaBs allowing them to translocate to the nucleus where it regulates gene transcription. NF-kappaB is involved in a lot of physiological processes such as immunity, inflammation, cell proliferation, apoptosis and even tumorigenesis by regulating the transcription of a larger number of genes. This review introduces the various mechanisms of NF-kappaB activation including a recently reported alternative activation pathway mediated by lymphotoxin alpha/beta, B cell activating factor and CD40 ligand. The signal transduction pathway leading to NF-kappaB activation via IKK in response to proinflammatory factors like TNF-alpha and IL-1 is addressed in more detail concerning the regulation of IKK activity, mechanism of IkappaB degradation and regulation of transactivation activity of NF-kappaB on different levels. Considering the important role of NF-kappaB in cell proliferation and regulation of various genes participating in apoptosis, the involvement of NF-kappaB in tumorigenesis and drug screening is also discussed.