Bornyl acetate extracted from Sharen () inhibits proliferation, invasion and induces apoptosis by suppressing phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase/protein kinase B signaling in colorectal cancer.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the antitumor effects of bornyl acetate (BA) isolated from Sharen (Fructus Amomi) in colorectal cancer (CRC) and the underlying mechanisms. METHODS: SW480 and HT29 cells were treated with increasing doses of BA in order to determine its antitumor effects in vitro. Cell viability, colony formation, cell cycle, and apoptosis as well as migration and invasion were assessed using various assays. In addition, the in vivo antitumor effects of BA were assessed using a xenograft mouse model. We then assessed the mechanism of action of BA by conducting pathway activator-mediated rescue experiments and assessed the protein levels by Western blot analysis. RESULTS: BA showed anti-CRC tumor activities in vitro by suppressing cell proliferation and colony formation, inducing apoptosis, blocking cell cycle, and inhibiting migration and invasion. These effects were mediated via suppression of the phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase/protein kinase B (PI3K/AKT) pathway. In the tumor xenograft experiment, BA was found to repress tumor growth in vivo with low toxicity. CONCLUSIONS: The results demonstrated that BA exerts antitumor effects by suppressing the PI3K/AKT pathway, with low toxicity. Thus, BA might be a potential novel therapeutic agent for CRC.

Source apportionment of potentially toxic elements in soils using APCS/MLR, PMF and geostatistics in a typical industrial and mining city in Eastern China.

Source apportionment of potentially toxic elements in soils is a critical step for devising soil sustainable management strategies. However, misjudgment or imprecision can occur when traditional statistical methods are applied to identify and apportion the sources. The main objective of the study was to develop a robust approach composed of the absolute principal component score/multiple linear regression (APCS/MLR) receptor model, positive matrix factorization (PMF) receptor model and geostatistics to identify and apportion sources of soil potentially toxic elements in typical industrial and mining city, eastern China. APCS/MLR and PMF were applied to provide robust factors with contribution rates. The geostatistics coupled with the variography and kriging methods was used to present factors derived from these two receptor models. The results indicated that mean concentrations of As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb and Zn exceeded the local background levels. Based on multivariate receptor models and geostatistics, we determined four sources of eight potentially toxic elements including natural source (parent material), agricultural practices, pollutant emissions (industrial, mining and traffic) and the atmospheric deposition of coal combustion, which accounted for 68%, 12%, 12% and 9% of the observed potentially toxic element concentrations, respectively. This study provides a reliable and robust approach for potentially toxic elements source apportionment in this particular industrial and mining city with a clear potential for future application in other regions.

Sublethal Effects of Four Insecticides on the Seven-Spotted Lady Beetle (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae).

To further develop integrated pest management (IPM) strategies against two sucking insect pests, Aleurocanthus spiniferus (Quaintanca) (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) and Toxoptera aurantii Boyer (Hemiptera: Aphididae), in Chinese tea plantations, it is important to evaluate the effects of insecticides on biological control agents, such as the seven-spot lady beetle, Coccinella septempunctata L. (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae). Therefore, we tested the toxicity and sublethal effects of spirotetramat, clothianidin, lambda-cyhalothrin, and bifenthrin on C. septempunctata. The side effects of the active ingredients of the insecticides were evaluated with residual contact tests on the larvae of C. septempunctata in the laboratory. Spirotetramat and clothianidin exhibited lower lethality to C. septempunctata as shown by the higher LC50 values and had higher selectivity for A. spiniferus and T. aurantii based on the selective toxicity ratios being superior to other tested insecticides. Spirotetramat also did not affect survival, longevity, fecundity, and egg hatching of C. septempunctata. Clothianidin and bifenthrin prolonged the duration of larval development stages of C. septempunctata obviously. Clothianidin at >2.5 mg/liter, lambda-cyhalothrin at >0.03 mg/liter, and bifenthrin at >0.125 mg/liter significantly reduced the survival and pupation rates of C. septempunctata larvae. Furthermore, spirotetramat at 3.125 mg/liter was harmless (IOBC class 1) to larvae of this coccinellid species. Based on the results, spirotetramat was innocuous to C. septempunctata larvae compared with clothianidin, lambda-cyhalothrin, and bifenthrin. Therefore, spirotetramat might be incorporated into IPM programs in combination with C. septempunctata for control of A. spiniferus and T. aurantii in the tea plantations.