Comprehensive widely targeted metabolomics to decipher the molecular mechanisms of Dioscorea opposita thunb. cv. Tiegun quality formation during harvest.

Dioscorea opposita Thumb. cv. Tiegun is commonly consumed as both food and traditional Chinese medicine, which has a history of more than two thousand years. Harvest time directly affects its quality, but few studies have focused on metabolic changes during the harvesting process. Here, a comprehensive metabolomics approach was performed to determine the metabolic profiles during six harvest stages. Thirty eight metabolites with significant differences were determined as crucial participants. Related metabolic pathways including phenylalanine, tyrosine and tryptophan biosynthesis, stilbenoid, diarylheptanoid and gingerol biosynthesis, phenylpropanoid biosynthesis, flavonoid biosynthesis and tryptophan metabolism were the most active pathways during harvest. The results revealed that temperature has a significant impact on quality formation, which suggested that Dioscorea opposita thumb. cv. Tiegun harvested after frost had higher potential value of traditional Chinese medicine. This finding not only offered valuable guidance for yam production, but also provided essential information for assessing its quality.

Exogenous Melatonin Enhances the Low Phosphorus Tolerance of Barley Roots of Different Genotypes.

Melatonin (N-acetyl-5-methoxytryptamine) plays an important role in plant growth and development, and in the response to various abiotic stresses. However, its role in the responses of barley to low phosphorus (LP) stress remains largely unknown. In the present study, we investigated the root phenotypes and metabolic patterns of LP-tolerant (GN121) and LP-sensitive (GN42) barley genotypes under normal P, LP, and LP with exogenous melatonin (30 µM) conditions. We found that melatonin improved barley tolerance to LP mainly by increasing root length. Untargeted metabolomic analysis showed that metabolites such as carboxylic acids and derivatives, fatty acyls, organooxygen compounds, benzene and substituted derivatives were involved in the LP stress response of barley roots, while melatonin mainly regulated indoles and derivatives, organooxygen compounds, and glycerophospholipids to alleviate LP stress. Interestingly, exogenous melatonin showed different metabolic patterns in different genotypes of barley in response to LP stress. In GN42, exogenous melatonin mainly promotes hormone-mediated root growth and increases antioxidant capacity to cope with LP damage, while in GN121, it mainly promotes the P remobilization to supplement phosphate in roots. Our study revealed the protective mechanisms of exogenous MT in alleviating LP stress of different genotypes of barley, which can be used in the production of phosphorus-deficient crops.

Advanced low-strength wastewater treatment, side-stream phosphorus recovery, and in situ sludge reduction with aerobic granular sludge.

Modern paradigm has upgraded wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) to water resources recovery facilities (WRRFs), where aerobic granular sludge (AGS) is a sewage treatment technology with promising phosphorus recovery (PR) potential. Herein, the AGS-based simultaneous nitrification, denitrification, and phosphorus removal coupling side-stream PR process (AGS-SNDPRr) was developed with municipal wastewater. Results revealed that AGS always maintained good structural stability, and pollutant removal was unaffected and effective after 40 days of anaerobic phosphorus-rich liquid extraction (fixed rate of 30%). The AGS-SNDPRr achieved a stable phosphorus recovery efficiency of 63.40%, and the side-stream PR further exaggerated in situ sludge reduction by 7.7-10%. Apart from responses of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS), the Matthew effect of typical denitrifying glycogen accumulating organisms (DGAOs) Candidatus_Competibacter up to 67.40% mainly contributed to enhanced performance of this new process. This study demonstrated a new approach for simultaneous advanced wastewater treatment, phosphorus recovery, and excess sludge minimization.

Performance of anaerobic/oxic/anoxic simultaneous nitrification, denitrification and phosphorus removal system overwhelmingly dominated by Candidatus_Competibacter: Effect of aeration time.

The anaerobic/oxic/anoxic simultaneous nitrification, denitrification and phosphorus removal process (AOA-SNDPR) is a promising technology for enhanced biological wastewater treatment and in situ sludge reduction. Herein, effects of aeration time (90, 75, 60, 45, and 30 min, respectively) on the AOA-SNDPR were evaluated including simultaneous nutrients removal, sludge characteristics, and microbial community evolution, where the role of a denitrifying glycogen accumulating organisms, Candidatus_Competibacter, was re-explored given its overwhelming dominance. Results revealed that nitrogen removal was more vulnerable, and a moderate aeration period of 45-60 min favored nutrients removal most. Low observed sludge yields (Yobs) were obtained with decreased aeration (as low as 0.02-0.08 g MLSS/g COD), while MLVSS/MLSS got increased. The dominance of Candidatus_Competibacter was identified as the key to endogenous denitrifying and in situ sludge reduction. This study would aid the low carbon- and energy-efficient aeration strategy for AOA-SNDPR systems treating low-strength municipal wastewater.

Yinma Jiedu Granule attenuates LPS-induced acute lung injury in rats via suppressing inflammation level.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Yinma Jiedu Granule (YMJD) is a traditional Chinese patent medicine (CPM), which has been proved to have anti-inflammatory effects and therapeutical effects on obstructive pulmonary disease. AIM OF STUDY: The purpose of the current investigation is to find out if YMJD can alleviate acute lung injury (ALI) induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in rats and its underlying mechanisms. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Rats were treated with either vehicle or YMJD for 14 consecutive days, and 2 h after the last administration, the rat model of ALI was induced by the intratracheal instillation of LPS. High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was applied for the fingerprint analysis of YMJD. The efficacy and molecular mechanisms were investigated. RESULTS: The results showed that treatment with YMJD improved the general state of rats, reduced weight loss and serum lactate (LA) levels, attenuated pulmonary edema and pathological damage of the lung tissue. Moreover, we found that YMJD effectively decreased the infiltration of white blood cells (WBC), lymphocytes (LYM), mononuclear cells (MON) and neutrophils (NEUT) in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF), reduced the concentration of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-1ß (IL-1ß) and inhibited inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) expression in the lung tissue. Additionally, we found that YMJD could significantly increase the activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and reduce the malondialdehyde (MDA) level in the lung tissue. By employing RNA-sequencing, we have identified that JAK2/STAT1 is an important pathway that is involved in the lung protection of YMJD, and further Western blot assay verified that YMJD could effectively inhibit the activation of the JAK2/STAT1 pathway. CONCLUSIONS: YMJD could attenuate LPS-induced ALI through suppressing inflammation and oxidative stress in the lung tissue of rats, associating with the inhibition of JAK2/STAT1 activation. These findings provide evidence for the clinical use of YMJD for treatment of inflammatory pulmonary diseases like ALI.

Gardenia jasminoides Extract GJ-4 Alleviates Memory Deficiency of Vascular Dementia in Rats through PERK-Mediated Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress Pathway.

Endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS) is involved in the pathological process of vascular dementia (VD). GJ-4 is extracted from Gardenia jasminoides J. Ellis and has been reported to have protective roles in ischemia-related brain damage. However, the role of GJ-4 in ERS has not been elucidated. We established a VD rat model through bilateral common carotid arteries occlusion (2-VO). The rats were intragastrically administrated with GJ-4 (10, 25, and 50[Formula: see text]mg/kg) and nimodipine (10[Formula: see text]mg/kg). Data from a Morris water maze test showed that GJ-4 could significantly alleviate learning and memory deficits in VD rats. Nissl and cleaved caspase-3 staining revealed that GJ-4 can inhibit apoptosis and thus exert a protective role in the brain of 2-VO rats. Western blot results suggested that GJ-4 significantly reduced ERS-related protein expression and inhibited apoptosis through suppression of the PERK/eIF2[Formula: see text]/ATF4/CHOP signaling pathway. For in vitro studies, the oxygen-glucose deprivation (OGD) SH-SY5Y model was employed. Western blot and Hoechst 33342/PI double staining were utilized to explore the effects of crocetin, the main active metabolite of GJ-4. Like GJ-4 in vivo, crocetin in vitro also decreased ERS-related protein expression and inhibited the activation of the PERK/eIF2[Formula: see text]/ATF4/CHOP signaling pathway. Thus, crocetin exerted similar protective roles on OGD challenged SH-SY5Y cells in vitro. In summary, GJ-4 and crocetin reduce the ERS in the brain of VD rats and SY5Y cells subjected to OGD and inhibit neuronal apoptosis through suppression of the PERK/eIF2[Formula: see text]/ATF4/CHOP pathway, suggesting that GJ-4 may be useful for the treatment of VD.

Rapid start-up and stable operation of an aerobic/oxic/anoxic simultaneous nitrification, denitrification, and phosphorus removal reactor with no sludge discharge.

An anaerobic/aerobic/anoxic mode simultaneous nitrification, denitrification, and phosphorus removal system was visited for enhanced low-strength wastewater treatment and dramatic in situ sludge reduction. Results showed that rapid start-up was achieved with conventional activated sludge after 15 days, with effluent ammonia nitrogen, total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and chemical oxygen demand being 0.25, 7.89, 0.12, 24.37 mg/L, respectively. A two-stage biomass growth rate was observed with the sludge yield of 0.285 (day 1-50) and 0.017 g MLSS/g COD (day 51-110) without sludge discharge. Dynamics of bacterial community has been identified with outstanding accumulation of Candidatus_Competibacter up to 29.06 %, which contributed to both simultaneous nutrients removal and sludge reduction. Further analysis via PICRUSt2 revealed the main pathway of nitrogen metabolism, while proposed mechanism for phosphorus removal with no sludge discharge was analyzed from the intracellular and extracellular perspectives. Overall, this study provided guidance and reference for the development and application of A/O/A-SNDPR technology.

Characterization, risk assessment and resource potential of sediments in the black-odor water in Hunan, China.

The black-odor water in urban water bodies is increasingly found, resulting in serious atrophy of water bodies and degradation of water ecosystems. At present, the pollution status of the sediments as an internal source still remains much unknown. In order to assess the pollution status of black-odor water sediments, the content of total nitrogen, total phosphorus, organic matter and heavy metals in the sediments were determined by taking the black-odor water sediments in urban areas of Hunan Province as the research object. Geoaccumulation and potential ecological risks index methods were used to evaluate heavy metal pollution in the sediments, and comprehensive pollution index method was used to evaluate nitrogen and phosphorus nutrient pollution in the sediments so as to provide pertinent information for urban black-odor water treatment. Finally, resource recovery potentials of sediments in black-odor water were revealed. The results could be beneficial for evaluation of sediments in black-odor water bodies.

Distinct responses of aerobic granular sludge sequencing batch reactors to nitrogen and phosphorus deficient conditions.

The nutrients availability determines efficiency of biological treatment systems, along with the structure and metabolism of microbiota. Herein nutrients deficiencies on aerobic granular sludge were comparatively evaluated, treating wastewater with mass ratios of chemical oxygen demand : nitrogen : phosphorus being 200:20:4, 200:2:4, and 200:20:0.4 (deemed as nutrient-balanced, nitrogen-deficient, and phosphorus-deficient), respectively. Results revealed that both nitrogen and phosphorus deficiencies significantly raised the effluent qualities especially nitrogen removal. However, nitrogen deficiency aroused considerable growth of filamentous bacteria, while granules kept compact structure under phosphorus deficient condition. Extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) also varied in contents and structures in response to different wastewaters. Microbial community structure analysis demonstrated that nitrogen deficiency led to lower richness and higher diversity, while the reverse was observed under phosphorus deficient condition. Nitrogen deficiency mainly induced decrease of nitrifying bacteria, while similarly phosphorus deficiency led to loss of phosphorus accumulating organisms. Dramatic enrichment Candidatus_Competibacter and filamentous Thiothrix were found under nutrients deficiencies, in which the latter explained and indicated filamentous bulking potential especially under nitrogen limited condition. Bacterial metabolism patterns verified the functions of microbial community responding to nutrients via PICRUSt2 prediction mainly by up-regulating cell motility, and cellular processes and signaling. This study could aid understanding of long-term stability of aerobic granular sludge for low-strength wastewater treatment.

Insights into the simultaneous nitrification, denitrification and phosphorus removal process for in situ sludge reduction and potential phosphorus recovery.

A simultaneous nitrification-denitrification and phosphorus removal (SNDPR) system operated in an alternating anaerobic/aerobic/anoxic (A/O/A) mode was revisited from new perspectives of sludge reduction and potential phosphorus recovery. Reliable and robust removal performance was obtained even under winter temperatures, with average removal efficiency of COD, TP, NH4+-N and TIN being 89.68%, 93.60%, 92.15% and 79.01% at steady state, respectively. Inoculated sludge got enhanced in biomass density, settleability, and bioactivity. And relatively stable amounts of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) with a stable protein/ polysaccharide (PN/PS) ratio were observed over operation. Meanwhile, a low observed sludge yield (Yobs) of 0.083 g MLSS/g COD (0.082 g MLVSS/g COD) was obtained. A maximum anaerobic phosphorus release up to 43.54 mg/L was found, thus providing phosphorus-rich and low-turbidity stream for further phosphorus recovery. Overall, the SNDPR system deserved attention for in situ sludge reduction and potential phosphorus recovery, beyond reliable and stable wastewater treatment.

NMR-based metabolomics approach to investigate the distribution characteristics of metabolites in Dioscorea opposita Thunb. cv. Tiegun.

Dioscorea opposita Thunb. cv. Tiegun (DTT), a type of homologous medicinal plant, is commonly used as food in daily life. However, there has always been confusion regarding removal of the peel, as the nutrient metabolite composition of the peel is unclear. Here, a nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)-based metabolomics approach was used to determine the metabolite distribution in DTT exclude-peel and peel. Thirteen characteristic metabolites with statistical significance were identified and compared using multivariate, univariate and cluster analyses. The results demonstrated that the peel contained the higher levels of α-glucose, batatasin IV, batatasin I, asparagine, ß-glucose, protodioscin, threonine, protogracillin, dioscin, and ß-sitosteryl acetate, and the samples without the peel had the higher levels of leucine, glutamine and alanine. This study provided scientific data for understanding the distribution characteristics of metabolites in DTT samples, promoting reasonable consumption of DTT.

Novel Strategy to Decipher the Regulatory Mechanism of 1-Naphthaleneacetic Acid in Strawberry Maturation.

1-Naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA) has long been used to regulate strawberry growth. However, its regulatory mechanisms are unclear. Here, a nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)-based metabolomics approach was utilized to capture differential metabolites, then matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) and transcriptomics as assisted methods to validate the significant findings of metabolomics. The metabolomics results suggested that NAA regulated strawberry growth via multiple metabolic pathways, and different NAA application times also influenced these regulatory effects. We also found an interesting phenomenon that citric acid had completely opposite changes when NAA was sprayed at two different ripening stages of the strawberries. Furthermore, MALDI-TOF MS validated the changes of citric acid and transcriptomics identified the related genes. The study demonstrated that the novel strategy of "metabolomics capture-MALDI-TOF MS and transcriptomics assisted validation" could offer a fresh insight for understanding the mechanism of the plant growth regulator in strawberry maturation.

[Advances on chemical constituents and pharmacological activities of Ceriops genus].

Plants of the genus Ceriops (Rhizophoraceae) consist of five species, which were widely distributed in tropical Asia, Eastern Africa and Oceania. So far,phytochemical studies showed that a total of 131 compounds including 120 terpenoids had been isolated from this genus, which exhibited anti-inflammatory, antihyperglycaemic, antitumor, anti-microbial, antioxidant, antifouling and antiviral activities. This article summarized the recent research progress of the chemical compositions and their pharmacological activities from the genus,which could provide reference for the development and utilization of the Ceriops plants.

Intestinal transport of pure diester-type alkaloids from an aconite extract across the Caco-2 cell monolayer model.

Aconitine (AC), mesaconitine (MA), and hypaconitine (HA) are the active alkaloids identified in aconite tuber, an important traditional Chinese medicine. The study is aimed to investigate their intestinal transport profiles and potential interaction during the intestinal absorption using the Caco-2 cell monolayer model. All three alkaloids had good permeability with P(app) values greater than 1 × 10 (-6) cm · s (-1). However, AC, MA, and HA in a mixture and as an extract, in both cases with the same content of alkaloids, showed higher transport efficiency in the apical to basolateral, and lower transport efficiency in the basolateral to apical directions. Digoxin, as a P-glycoprotein (P-gp) substrate, was substantially effluxed in the basolateral to apical direction but inhibited by the three alkaloids. Furthermore, the backwards transport of MA and HA was inhibited by the P-gp inhibitor verapamil. These observations indicated that the three alkaloids may not only be P-gp inhibitors but also its substrates; they interact with each other and can potentially enhance their own bioavailability when taken concomitantly.