Analysis on acupoint selection rules in the treatment of metabolism-associated fatty liver disease based on data mining. / åŸºäºŽæ•°æ®æŒ–æŽ˜æŠ€æœ¯åˆ†æžé’ˆç¸æ²»ç–—ä»£è°¢ç›¸å ³è„‚è‚ªæ€§è‚ç— çš„é€‰ç©´è§„å¾‹.

OBJECTIVES: To explore the rules of acupoint selection in the treatment of metabolic-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) with acupuncture and moxibustion by using data mining technology. METHODS: The clinical research literature on acupuncture treatment of MAFLD was collected from PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang Database, VIP Database and China Biology Medicine from their inception to November 20, 2022. According to our inclusion and exclusion criteria, the literature was independently screened and re-screened by two research members, and the screened results were checked, followed by establishing an acupoint prescription database using Excel 2019. Descriptive statistics of acupoints applied frequency, involved meridians, locations and specific acupoints were perpormed. Then, SPSS Modeler18.0 software was used to conduct analysis about association rules, and the SPSS Statistics 26.0 software was used to perform cluster analysis on high-frequency acupoints, exploring the characteristics and rules of acupoint selection and combination in the treatment of MAFLD. RESULTS: Totally, 178 papers were collected, containing 130 acupoints, with a total application frequency of 1 305. The top five acupoints are Zusanli (ST36), Fenglong (ST40), Ganshu (BL18), Taichong (LR3) and Sanyinjiao (SP6). The commonly involved meridians are the Stomach Meridian of Foot Yangming, Bladder Meridian of Foot Taiyang, and Spleen Meridian of Foot Taiyin. The employed acupoints are mostly located in the lower limbs and abdomen, and the five Shu acupoints and crossing acupoints are in the majority. The association rule analysis of high frequency acupoints indicated that of the 16 qualified acupoint groups, the top 5 with close correlation degrees are ST36 and ST40, ST36 and LR3, ST36 and SP6, ST40 and LR3 and ST36, ST36 and SP6 and ST40. Further, 3 effective clusters were obtained by cluster analysis. CONCLUSIONS: Acupuncture and moxibustion treatment of MAFLD follows the therapeutic principles of soothing the liver, invigorating the spleen, tonifying the kidney, and resolving phlegm and removing dampness. The core acupoint group is ST36, ST40 and LR3, and the combination of acupoints is based on syndrome differentiation. These results may provide a useful reference for clinical practice.

Antitumor effect of luteolin proven by patient-derived organoids of gastric cancer.

Luteolin (Lut) has been shown to inhibit gastric cancer (GC); however, its efficacy compared to other clinical drugs has not been examined in human samples. This study aimed to elucidate the antitumor activity of Lut in GC patient-derived organoids (PDOs). PDOs were established from GC cancer tissues, and the characterization of tissues and PDOs was performed using whole-exome sequencing. Drug sensitivity tests were performed by treating PDOs with Lut, norcantharidin (NCTD), and carboplatin (CP). RNA sequencing of PDOs was performed to elucidate the antitumor mechanism of Lut, which was further verified in three GC cell lines. Eleven PDOs were successfully constructed, and were highly consistent with the pathophysiology and genetic changes in the corresponding tumors. The IC50s of Lut, NCTD, and CP of PDOs were 27.19, 23.9, and 37.87 µM, respectively. Lut treatment upregulated FOXO3, DUSP1, and CDKN1A expression and downregulated IL1R1 and FGFR4 expression in GC cell lines, which was consistent with the results of PDOs. We demonstrate that Lut exerted stronger antitumor effects than CP, but a similar effect to that of NCTD, which was obtained in an in vitro PDO system. Additionally, Lut exerted varying degrees of antitumor effects against the PDOs, thereby indicating that PDO may be a useful preclinical drug screening tool for personalized treatment.

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.

The tibetan medicine Zuozhu-Daxi can prevent Helicobacter pylori induced-gastric mucosa inflammation by inhibiting lipid metabolism.

BACKGROUND: Tibetan medicine has been used in clinical practice for more than 3800 years. Zuozhu-Daxi (ZZDX), a classic traditional Tibetan medicine, has been proved to be effective in the treatment of digestive diseases, such as chronic gastritis, gastric ulcer, etc. Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori), one of the most common pathogenic microbes, is regarded as the most common cause of gastritis. Researching on the effects of ZZDX on H. pylori-induced gastric mucosa inflammation could provide more evidences on H. pylori treatment and promote the development of Tibetan medicine. This study aimed to explore whether ZZDX could rescue H. pylori-induced gastric mucosa inflammation and its mechanism. METHODS: Male C57BL/6 mice were infected with H. pylori, and orally treated with ZZDX to rescue gastric mucosa inflammation induced by H. pylori infection. Pathology of gastric mucosa inflammation was evaluated under microscopy by hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining. The infection status of H. pylori was evaluated by immunohistochemical (IHC) staining. The reactive oxygen species (ROS) level in serum was evaluated using a detection kit. IL-1α, IL-6, and PGE2 expression levels in serum were measured using ELISA. IL-1α, IL-8, TNF-α, and NOD1 expression levels in gastric tissues were measured using real-time PCR. RNA sequencing and gene certification of interest were performed to explore the mechanisms in vivo and in vitro. RESULTS: The results showed that ZZDX could significantly inhibit H. pylori-induced gastric mucosa inflammation using HE staining. IL-1α, IL-6, and PGE2 expression levels in serum were significantly decreased after treatment with ZZDX. ZZDX treatment significantly decreased the mRNA expression of IL-8 induced by H. pylori infection in gastric tissues. Elovl4, Acot1 and Scd1 might be involved in the mechanisms of ZZDX treatment. However, the H. pylori infection status in the gastric mucosa was not reduced after ZZDX treatment. CONCLUSIONS: ZZDX reversed gastric mucosal injury and alleviated gastric mucosa inflammation induced by H. pylori infection.

Total terpenoids of Inula japonica activated the Nrf2 receptor to alleviate the inflammation and oxidative stress in LPS-induced acute lung injury.

BACKGROUND: Acute lung injury (ALI) is a life-threatening lung disease and characterized by pulmonary edema and atelectasis. Inula japonica Thunb. is a commonly used traditional Chinese medicine for the treatment of lung diseases. However, the potential effect and mechanism of total terpenoids of I. japonica (TTIJ) on ALI remain obscure. PURPOSE: This study focused on the protective effect of TTIJ on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced ALI in mice and its potential mechanism. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: A mouse model of ALI was established by intratracheal instillation of LPS to investigate the protective effect of TTIJ. RNA-seq and bioinformatics were then performed to reveal the underlying mechanism. Finally, western blot and real-time qPCR were used to verify the effects of TTIJ on the inflammation and oxidative stress. RESULTS: TTIJ notably attenuated LPS-induced histopathological changes of lung. The RNA-seq result suggested that the protective effect of TTIJ on LPS-induced ALI were associated with the Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) and nuclear factor-erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) signaling pathways. Pretreatment with TTIJ significantly reduced the inflammation and oxidative stress via regulating levels of pro-inflammatory and anti-oxidative cytokines, such as tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and glutathione (GSH), in LPS-induced ALI mice. TTIJ treatment could suppress the cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) expression level and the phosphorylation of p65, p38, ERK, and JNK through the inactivation of the MAPK/NF-κB signaling pathway in a TLR4-independent manner. Meanwhile, TTIJ treatment upregulated expression levels of proteins involved in the Nrf2 signaling pathway, such as heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1), NAD(P)H: quinoneoxidoreductase-1 (NQO-1), glutamate-cysteine ligase catalytic subunit (GCLC), and glutamate-cysteine ligase modifier subunit (GCLM), via activating the Nrf2 receptor, which was confirmed by the luciferase assay. CONCLUSION: TTIJ could activate the Nrf2 receptor to alleviate the inflammatory response and oxidative stress in LPS-induced ALI mice, which suggested that TTIJ could serve as the potential agent in the treatment of ALI.

High-speed identification system for fresh tea leaves based on phenotypic characteristics utilizing an improved genetic algorithm.

BACKGROUND: High-quality tea requires leaves of similar size and tenderness. The grade of the fresh leaves determines the quality of the tea. The automated classification of fresh tea leaves improves resource utilization and reduces manual picking costs. The present study proposes a method based on an improved genetic algorithm for identifying fresh tea leaves in high-speed parabolic motion using the phenotypic characteristics of the leaves. During parabolic flight, light is transmitted through the tea leaves, and six types of fresh tea leaves can be quickly identified by a camera. RESULTS: The influence of combinations of morphology, color, and custom corner-point morphological features on the classification results were investigated, and the necessary dimensionality of the model was tested. After feature selection and combination, the classification performance of the Naive Bayes, k-nearest neighbor, and support vector machine algorithms were compared. The recognition time of Naive Bayes was the shortest, whereas the accuracy of support vector machine had the best classification accuracy at approximately 97%. The support vector machine algorithm with only three feature dimensions (equivalent diameter, circularity, and skeleton endpoints) can meet production requirements with an accuracy rate reaching 92.5%. The proposed algorithm was tested by using the Swedish leaf and Flavia data sets, on which it achieved accuracies of 99.57% and 99.44%, respectively, demonstrating the flexibility and efficiency of the recognition scheme detailed in the present study. CONCLUSION: This research provides an efficient tea leaves recognition system that can be applied to production lines to reduce manual picking costs. © 2022 Society of Chemical Industry.

Potent Inhibition of Human Cytochrome P450 3A4 by Biflavone Components from Ginkgo Biloba and Selaginella Tamariscina.

CYP3A4-mediated Phase I biotransformation is the rate-limiting step of elimination for many commonly used clinically agents. The modulatory effects of herbal medicines on CYP3A4 activity are one of the risk factors affecting the safe use of drug and herbal medicine. In the present study, the inhibitory effects of nearly hundred kinds of herbal medicines against CYP3A4 were evaluated based on a visual high-throughput screening method. Furthermore, biflavone components including bilobetin (7-demethylginkgetin, DGK), ginkgetin (GK), isoginkgetin (IGK), and amentoflavone (AMF) were identified as the main inhibitory components of Ginkgo biloba L. (GB) and Selaginella tamariscina (P. Beauv.) Spring (ST), which displayed very strong inhibitory effects toward CYP3A4. The inhibitory effects of these biflavones on clinical drugs that mainly undergo CYP3A4-dependent metabolism were evaluated. The IC 50 of GK toward tamoxifen, gefitinib and ticagrelor were found to be of 0.478 ± 0.003, 0.869 ± 0.001, and 1.61 ± 0.039 µM, respectively. These results suggest the potential pharmacokinetic interactions between the identified biflavones and clinical drugs undergoing CYP3A4-mediated biotransformation. The obtained information is important for guiding the rational use of herbal medicine in combination with synthetic pharmaceuticals.

α-Glucosidase Inhibitory Activities and the Interaction Mechanism of Novel Spiro-Flavoalkaloids from YingDe Green Tea.

Flavoalkaloids are a unique class of compounds in tea, most of which have an N-ethyl-2-pyrrolidinone moiety substituted at the A ring of a catechin skeleton. 1-Ethyl-5-hydroxy-pyrrolidone, a decomposed product of theanine, was supposed to be the key intermediate to form tea flavoalkaloids. However, we have also detected another possible theanine intermediate, 1-ethyl-5-oxopyrrolidine-2-carboxylic acid, and speculated if there are related conjugated catechins. Herein, four novel spiro-flavoalkaloids with a spiro-γ-lactone structural moiety were isolated from Yingde green tea (Camellia sinensis var. assamica) in our continuing exploration of new chemical constituents from tea. The structures of the new compounds, spiro-flavoalkaloids A-D (1-4), were further elucidated by extensive nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy together with the calculated 13C NMR, IR, UV-vis, high-resolution mass, optical rotation, experimental, and calculated circular dichroism spectra. We also provided an alternative pathway to produce these novel spiro-flavoalkaloids. Additionally, their α-glucosidase inhibitory activities were determined with IC50 values of 3.34 (1), 5.47 (2), 22.50 (3), and 15.38 (4) µM. Docking results revealed that compounds 1 and 2 mainly interacted with residues ASP-215, ARG-442, ASP-352, GLU-411, HIS-280, ARG-315, and ASN-415 of α-glucosidase through hydrogen bonds. The fluorescence intensity of α-glucosidase could be quenched by compounds 1 and 2 in a static style.

Isolation and identification of two new sargentodoxosides from Sargentodoxa cuneata and their agonistic effects against FXR.

Sargentodoxa cuneata (Oliv.) Rehd. et Wils is a traditional Chinese medicine to treat acute appendicitis, rheumarthritis, abdominal pain, and painful menstruation for a long history. The investigation of S. cuneata led to the isolation and identification of twenty-three secondary metabolites, including two new compounds, sargentodoxosides A (1) and B (2), and twenty-one known ones (3-23). Their structural characterization was conducted by HRESIMS, 1 D and 2 D NMR spectra. All the isolated compounds were assayed for their agonistic activities against the farnesoid X receptor (FXR). Nine of the isolated compounds displayed significant agonistic effects against FXR at 0.1 µM, suggesting that they could be served as potential agents for the development of FXR agonists.

Untargeted Metabolomics Combined with Bioassay Reveals the Change in Critical Bioactive Compounds during the Processing of Qingzhuan Tea.

Qingzhuan tea (QZT) is a typical Chinese dark tea that has a long-time manufacturing process. In the present study, liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry was used to study the chemical changes of tea samples during QZT processing. Untargeted metabolomics analysis revealed that the pile-fermentation and turnover (post-fermentation, FT) was the crucial stage in transforming the main compounds of QZT, whose contents of flavan-3-ols and flavonoids glycosides were decreased significantly. The bioactivities, including the antioxidant capacities and inhibitory effects on α-amylase and α-glucosidase, were also reduced after the FT process. It was suggested that although the QZT sensory properties improved following pile-fermentation and aging, the bioactivities remained restrained. Correlation analysis indicated that the main galloylated catechins and flavonoid glycosides were highly related to their antioxidant capacity and inhibitory effects on α-amylase and α-glucosidase.

[Consecutive 4-year Elevated Atmospheric CO2 on Shaped Microbial Communities in the Rhizosphere Soil of Robinia pseudoacacia L. Seedlings Grown in Pb-contaminated Soils].

Elevated atmospheric CO2 could affect the speciation of heavy metals in rhizosphere soils by changing root exudates, thereby influencing soil microecosystem in the rhizosphere. Therefore, understanding the function of heavy metals in soils on rhizospheric ecology under elevated atmospheric CO2 scenarios is highly important. Here, we investigated the combined effects of a four-year period of elevated air CO2 concentrations[(700±27) µmol·L-1] and Pb-contamination (15.6 mg·kg-1 and 515.6 mg·kg-1) on the soil rhizopheric microbial community of Robinia pseudoacacia L. seedlings. Significant (P<0.05) effects of CO2, Pb, and their interaction on bacterial richness and fungal diversity were observed. Relative to Pb exposure alone, elevated CO2 significantly increased pH, total C, total N, and water-soluble organic carbon, and the C/N ratio under Pb exposure (P<0.05) and significantly decreased total and soluble Pb content (P<0.05). The richness and diversity of bacteria increased (P<0.05), fungal richness decreased (P<0.05), and microbial diversity increased (P<0.05) under the combined treatments relative to Pb contamination alone. The changes in the relative abundance of the top two dominant bacterial and fungal genera were not significant; however, differences in the relative abundances of other groups, such as Anaerolineaceae, Solirubrobacterales, Eurotiomycetes, Aspergillus, and Trichocomaceae, were significant between the different treatments. According to a redundancy analysis, total C and soluble Pb had a significant influence (P<0.05) on the dominant bacterial genera, and total C affected (P<0.05) the dominant genera in the fungal community. These results suggest that the responses of soil environmental factors to the combination of elevated atmospheric CO2 and Pb could shape soil microbial community structure in the rhizosphere of R. pseudoacacia seedlings.

Transcriptome Analysis Revealed the Roles of Carbohydrate Metabolism on Differential Acetaldehyde Production Capacity in Persimmon Fruit in Response to High-CO2 Treatment.

Persimmon (Diospyros kaki Thunb.) fruit is unique due to the continuous accumulation of soluble tannins during fruit development in most cultivars, which causes undesired astringency. High-CO2 treatment was the most effective widely used method for astringency removal. However, differential effects of high-CO2 treatment between cultivars were observed and the molecular basis remained inclusive. Previously, one cultivar ("Luoyangfangtianshengshi," LYFTSS) showed rapid deastringency, while two cultivars ("Shijiazhuanglianhuashi," SJZLHS; "Laopige," LPG) showed slow deastringency in response to high-CO2 (95% CO2) treatment. In this study, the metabolites (acetaldehyde and ethanol) related to deastringency were further analyzed and both acetaldehyde and ethanol were higher in SJZLHS and LYFTSS than that in LPG, where acetaldehyde was undetectable. Based on the RNA-seq data, the weighted gene coexpression network analysis (WGCNA) revealed that one module, comprised of 1773 unigenes, significantly correlated with the contents of acetaldehyde and ethanol (P < 0.001). Further analysis based on the acetaldehyde metabolism pathway indicated that the differentially expressed structural genes, including previously characterized DkADH and DkPDC and also their upstream members (e.g., PFK, phosphofructokinase), showed positive correlations with acetaldehyde production. Quantitative analysis of the precursor substances indicated that sucrose, glucose, and fructose exhibited limited differences between cultivar except for malic acid. However, the content of malic acid is much less than the total soluble sugar content. To verify the correlations between these genes and acetaldehyde production, the fruit from 14 more cultivars were collected and treated with high CO2. After the treatment, acetaldehyde contents in different cultivars ranked in 30.4-255.5 µg/g FW. Real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and correlation analysis indicated that the EVM0002315 (PFK) gene, belonging to carbohydrate metabolism, was significantly correlated with acetaldehyde content in fruit. Thus, it could be proposed that the differentially expressed carbohydrate metabolism related genes (especially PFK) are the basis for the variance of acetaldehyde production among different persimmon cultivars.

Alisma genus: Phytochemical constituents, biosynthesis, and biological activities.

The genus Alisma contains 11 species distributed worldwide, of which at least two species (A. orientale [Sam.] Juzep. and A. plantago-aquatica Linn.) have been used as common herbal medicines. Secondary metabolites obtained from the genus Alisma are considered to be the material basis for the various biological functions and medicinal applications. In this review, we mainly focused on the recent investigations of secondary metabolites from plants of the genus Alisma and their biological activities, with the highlighting on the diversity of the chemical structures, the biosynthesis of interesting secondary metabolites, the biological activities, and the relationships between structures and bioactivities.

Unusual terpenoids from the fruits of Evodia rutaecarpa and their activation on the farnesoid X receptor.

Evolides A (1) and B (2) were isolated from the fruits of Evodia rutaecarpa and characterized by various spectroscopic data analyses (NMR, HRESIMS, ECD, and X-ray crystallography) and were thought to be new unusual terpenoids possessing lactone groups. An in vitro bioassay showed that compound 1 exhibited a significant activation effect on the farnesoid X receptor (EC50 0.73 µM).

Comparative study of vegetative and reproductive growth of different tea varieties response to different fluoride concentrations stress.

BACKGROUND: The amount of fluoride accumulation in tea leaves was gradually increase as the matures of tea plants, and the excessive fluoride intake can threaten people's health. Based on years of field investigations, a low level of fluoride variety Xiangbo Lǜ (XBL) and a high level of fluoride variety Zhenong 139 (ZN139) were selected. RESULTS: In this study, the root, 1st and the 5th leaf of the two-year-old tea trees were used for morphological, physiological and comparative transcriptomics analysis to understand the different features of "XBL" and "ZN139" under fluoride stress conditions. The color of the 1st and 5th leaves of XBL were yellower, the activity of peroxidase, catalase and antioxidant enzyme were lower than ZN139 under the high-fluoride stress. Transcriptomics analysis indicated that core genes involved in photosynthesis rates regulation showed no significantly exchanged expression, the co-downregulation of magnesium ions transportation, while the ROS scavenging, vegetative growth and self-compatibility between the two varieties were different. Crucial genes' expression were also identified by the real-time RT-PCR. CONCLUSION: The tea tree is one of the few plants that has a high-fluoride content, but the different varieties respond differently to fluoride stress. High-fluoride tea tree varieties, such as ZN139, have stronger ROS scavenging abilities through the use of both their non-enzymatic and enzymatic antioxidant systems which act by increasing the expression levels of inositol-1-monophosphatases and peroxidases, among others. ZN139 can also compensate for the decrease in photosynthetic rate that is associated with the ionic imbalance caused by the reduced consumption of light energy during long-periods of high fluoride stress. Reproductive development was protected in ZN139 by the up-regulated expression of S-locus glycoprotein, Mildew resistance locus o and Phospholipase D under fluoride stress, while the vegetative development of low-fluoride varieties such as XBL was retarded. More starch and cellulose were redistributed to glucose by increasing the expression levels of glycosyl transferases and hydrolases to provide more energy for processes involved in the response and tolerance towards fluoride stress.

Micro-NIR spectrometer for quality assessment of tea: Comparison of local and global models.

Near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy is an effective tool for analyzing components relevant to tea quality, especially catechins and caffeine. In this study, we predicted catechins and caffeine content in green and black tea, the main consumed tea types worldwide, by using a micro-NIR spectrometer connected to a smartphone. Local models were established separately for green and black tea samples, and these samples were combined to create global models. Different spectral preprocessing methods were combined with linear partial-least squares regression and nonlinear support vector machine regression (SVR) to obtain accurate models. Standard normal variate (SNV)-based SNV-SVR models exhibited accurate predictive performance for both catechins and caffeine. For the prediction of quality components of tea, the global models obtained results comparable to those of the local models. The optimal global models for catechins and caffeine were SNV-SVR and particle swarm optimization (PSO)-simplified SNV-PSO-SVR, which achieved the best predictive performance with correlation coefficients in prediction (Rp) of 0.98 and 0.93, root mean square errors in prediction of 9.83 and 2.71, and residual predictive deviations of 4.44 and 2.60, respectively. Therefore, the proposed low-price, compact, and portable micro-NIR spectrometer connected to smartphones is an effective tool for analyzing tea quality.

Rapid detection of quality index of postharvest fresh tea leaves using hyperspectral imaging.

BACKGROUND: The quality of fresh tea leaves after harvest determines, to some extent, the quality and price of commercial tea. A fast and accurate method to evaluate the quality of fresh tea leaves is required. RESULTS: In this study, the potential of hyperspectral imaging in the range of 328-1115 nm for the rapid prediction of moisture, total nitrogen, crude fiber contents, and quality index value was investigated. Ninety samples of eight tea-leaf varieties and two picking standards were tested. Quantitative partial least squares regression (PLSR) models were established using a full spectrum, whereas multiple linear regression (MLR) models were developed using characteristic wavelengths selected by a successive projections algorithm (SPA) and competitive adaptive reweighted sampling. The results showed that the optimal SPA-MLR models for moisture, total nitrogen, crude fiber contents, and quality index value yielded optimal performance with coefficients of determination for prediction (R2 p) of 0.9357, 0.8543, 0.8188, 0.9168; root mean square error of 0.3437, 0.1097, 0.3795, 1.0358; and residual prediction deviation of 4.00, 2.56, 2.31, and 3.51, respectively. CONCLUSION: The results suggested that the hyperspectral imaging technique coupled with chemometrics was a promising tool for the rapid and nondestructive measurement of tea-leaf quality, and had the potential to develop multispectral imaging systems for future online detection of tea-leaf quality. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry.

Open visiting in adult intensive care units - A structured literature review.

BACKGROUND: Open visitation in adult intensive care units report benefits such as reduced frequency and duration of deliriums, improved patient and family satisfaction, and reduced anxiety and depression of family members. 'Being close' is one of the most basic and important needs of family members of critically ill patients. Open visitation provides an increased opportunity of being at the bedside with the patient, however, it is not universally embraced by adult intensive care units worldwide. AIM: To critically appraise the literature concerning open visitation in adult intensive care units. DESIGN: A structured literature review. METHOD: This review was guided by the methodology by Kable et al. (2012). Sixteen articles are included in the review. RESULTS: Despite the documented benefits, several challenges exist which hinder broad application of open visitation in adult intensive care units. CONCLUSION: This review acknowledged challenges faced in adopting an open visiting policy in adult intensive care units such as negative staff perceptions and attitudes; patient protection; family and cultural consideration, as well as organisational challenges. The lack of a clear and consistent definition of open visitation is problematic, and strategies are urgently needed to support staff to provide holistic patient- and family-centred care.

Qualitative and quantitative diagnosis of nitrogen nutrition of tea plants under field condition using hyperspectral imaging coupled with chemometrics.

BACKGROUND: Rapid and accurate diagnosis of nitrogen (N) status in field crops is of great significance for site-specific N fertilizer management. This study aimed to evaluate the potential of hyperspectral imaging coupled with chemometrics for the qualitative and quantitative diagnosis of N status in tea plants under field conditions. RESULTS: Hyperspectral data from mature leaves of tea plants with different N application rates were preprocessed by standard normal variate (SNV). Partial least squares discriminative analysis (PLS-DA) and least squares-support vector machines (LS-SVM) were used for the classification of different N status. Furthermore, partial least squares regression (PLSR) was used for the prediction of N content. The results showed that the LS-SVM model yielded better performance with correct classification rates of 82% and 92% in prediction sets for the diagnosis of different N application rates and N status, respectively. The PLSR model for leaf N content (LNC) showed excellent performance, with correlation coefficients of 0.924, root mean square error of 0.209, and residual predictive deviation of 2.686 in the prediction set. In addition, the important wavebands of the PLSR model were interpreted based on regression coefficients. CONCLUSION: Overall, our results suggest that the hyperspectral imaging technique can be an effective and accurate tool for qualitative and quantitative diagnosis of N status in tea plants. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry.