JPT2 Affects Trophoblast Functions and Macrophage Polarization and Metabolism, and Acts as a Potential Therapeutic Target for Recurrent Spontaneous Abortion.

Recurrent spontaneous abortion (RSA) is a pregnancy-related condition with complex etiology. Trophoblast dysfunction and abnormal macrophage polarization and metabolism are associated with RSA; however, the underlying mechanisms remain unknown. Jupiter microtubule-associated homolog 2 (JPT2) is essential for calcium mobilization; however, its role in RSA remains unclear. In this study, it is found that the expression levels of JPT2, a nicotinic acid adenine dinucleotide phosphate-binding protein, are decreased in the villous tissues of patients with RSA and placental tissues of miscarried mice. Mechanistically, it is unexpectedly found that abnormal JPT2 expression regulates trophoblast function and thus involvement in RSA via c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) signaling, but not via calcium mobilization. Specifically, on the one hand, JPT2 deficiency inhibits trophoblast adhesion, migration, and invasion by inhibiting the JNK/atypical chemokine receptor 3 axis. On the other hand, trophoblast JPT2 deficiency contributes to M1 macrophage polarization by promoting the accumulation of citrate and reactive oxygen species via inhibition of the JNK/interleukin-6 axis. Self-complementary adeno-associated virus 9-JPT2 treatment alleviates embryonic resorption in abortion-prone mice. In summary, this study reveals that JPT2 mediates the remodeling of the immune microenvironment at the maternal-fetal interface, suggesting its potential as a therapeutic target for RSA.

Virtual screening based on pharmacophore model for developing novel HPPD inhibitors.

4-Hydroxyphenylpyruvate dioxygenase (HPPD) is an important target for herbicide design. A multilayered virtual screening workflow was constructed by combining two pharmacophore models based on ligand and crystal complexes, molecular docking, molecular dynamics (MD), and biological activity determination to identify novel small-molecule inhibitors of HPPD. About 110, 000 compounds of Bailingwei and traditional Chinese medicine databases were screened. Of these, 333 were analyzed through docking experiments. Five compounds were selected by analyzing the binding pattern of inhibitors with amino acid residues in the active pocket. All five compounds could produce stable coordination with cobalt ion, and form favorable π-π interactions. MD simulation demonstrated that Phe381 and Phe424 made large contributions to the strength of binding. The enzyme activity experiment verified that compound-139 displayed excellent potency against AtHPPD (IC50 = 0.742 µM), however, compound-5222 had inhibitory effect on human HPPD (IC50 = 6 nM). Compound-139 exhibited herbicidal activity to some extent on different gramineous weeds. This work provided a strong insight into the design and development of novel HPPD inhibitor using in silico techniques.

[Identification of Curcuma herbs using XGBoost algorithm in electronic nose odor fingerprint].

This article aims to identify four commonly applied herbs from Curcuma genus of Zingiberaceae family,namely Curcumae Radix( Yujin),Curcumae Rhizoma( Ezhu),Curcumae Longae Rhizoma( Jianghuang) and Wenyujin Rhizoma Concisum( Pianjianghuang). The odor fingerprints of those four herbal medicines were collected by electronic nose,respectively. Meanwhile,XGBoost algorithm was introduced to data analysis and discriminant model establishment,with four indexes for performance evaluation,including accuracy,precision,recall,and F-measure. The discriminant model was established by XGBoost with positive rate of returning to 166 samples in the training set and 69 samples in the test set were 99. 39% and 95. 65%,respectively. The top four of the contribution to the discriminant model were LY2/g CT,P40/1,LY2/Gh and LY2/LG,the least contributing sensor was T70/2. Compared with support vector machine,random forest and artificial neural network,XGBoost algorithms shows better identification capacity with higher recognition efficiency. The accuracy,precision,recall and F-measure of the XGBoost discriminant model forecast set were 95. 65%,95. 25%,93. 07%,93. 75%,respectively. The superiority of XGBoost in the identification of Curcuma herbs was verified. Obviously,this new method could not only be suitable for digitization and objectification of traditional Chinese medicine( TCM) odor indicators,but also achieve the identification of different TCM based on their odor fingerprint in electronic nose system. The introduction of XGBoost algorithm and more excellent algorithms provide more ideas for the application of electronic nose in data mining for TCM studies.

[Effects of phosphorus application rates and depths on P utilization and loss risk in a maize-soybean intercropping system]. / 施磷量与施磷深度对玉米-å¤§è±†å¥—ä½œç³»ç»Ÿç£·ç´ åˆ©ç”¨çŽ‡åŠç£·æµå¤±é£Žé™©çš„å½±å“.

In order to explore the advantage of intercropping on phosphorus (P) efficient utilization and the reduction of soil P loss, a field experiment in a maize-soybean intercropping system, which included three P application (P2O5) rates (CP: 168 kg·hm-2; RP1: 135 kg·hm-2; RP2: 101 kg·hm-2) and three P application depths (D1: applied in 5 cm depth; D2: applied in 15 cm depth; D3: 1/2 of P fertilizer applied in 5 cm depth and another 1/2 in 15 cm depth) was carried out to analyze the effects of P application rates and depth on crop aboveground biomass, grain yield, crop P uptake, soil total and available P contents, and soil P adsorption-desorption characteristics. Compared with control treatment, the aboveground biomass, grain yield, crop P uptake, soil total P, and available P content were increased significantly by P application, regardless of P rate and application depth. Under the same application depth, RP1 had similar grain yield but higher crop P uptake compared with CP, and thus higher P apparent utilization efficiency. Under the same P application rate, the application depth of D2 had the highest crop aboveground biomass, grain yield, P uptake, soil total P, and available P. According to the characteristic of soil P adsorption-desorption, the treatment with the rate of RP1 and the depth of D2 had the strongest soil P retention capacity, which had advantage in alleviating P loss. These results suggested that reducing application rate but increasing application depth of P fertilizer could improve P use efficiency and reduce soil P loss without sacrifice in crop production in maize-soybean relay intercropping system.

[A new method on investigate chemical constituents which have anti-thrombin effect by HPLC].

An in vitro anti-thrombin bioassay was developed to investigate the chemical constituents which have anti-thrombin effect from the water soluble components of Salvia miltiorrhiza. Using Chromozym TH as a probe combined with ethyl acetate Semi-micro extraction was applied to measure p-nitroaniline by HPLC. According to the results, the inactivationrate of thrombin by sodium danshensu, salvianolic acid A and salvianolic acid B under a given set of conditions were 3.06%, 77.77% and 2.35%, respectively. In the water-soluble components, salvianolic acid A has a direct inhibition of thrombin, while sodium danshensu and salvianolic acid B have no significant effect on thrombin. The method is sensitive and low consumption. It can eliminate the interference absorbed for the sample itself which can be used for screening single or multiple direct antithrombin active ingredient of herbal extract.