Therapeutic effect of Lactobacillus plantarum JS19 on mice with dextran sulfate sodium induced acute and chronic ulcerative colitis.

BACKGROUND: Ulcerative colitis is associated with intestinal inflammation and dysbiosis. Previous studies have shown that probiotics are potential agents for treatment of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Jiang-shui is a traditional fermented vegetable that is rich in lactic acid bacteria (LABs), but the preventive effect of LABs in jiang-shui on IBD is not yet fully understood. RESULTS: We isolated 38 LAB strains from jiang-shui, and Lactobacillus plantarum JS19 exhibited the strongest antioxidant activity among them. Our data indicate that oral administration of L. plantarum JS19 significantly inhibited body weight loss, colon shortening and damage, and reduced the disease activity index score in the mice with dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)-induced colitis. In addition, L. plantarum JS19 also alleviated inflammatory responses and oxidative stress through reducing lipid peroxidation, tumor necrosis factor-α expression, and myeloperoxidase activity and enhancing the antioxidant enzyme activity. Importantly, L. plantarum JS19 significantly rebalanced DSS-induced dysbiosis of gut microbiota. CONCLUSION: L. plantarum JS19 may be used as a potential probiotic to prevent IBD, particularly ulcerative colitis. © 2022 Society of Chemical Industry.

Generation of sub-MHz and spectrally-bright biphotons from hot atomic vapors with a phase mismatch-free scheme.

We utilized the all-copropagating scheme, which maintains the phase-match condition, in the spontaneous four-wave mixing (SFWM) process to generate biphotons from a hot atomic vapor. The linewidth and spectral brightness of our biphotons surpass those of the biphotons produced with the hot-atom SFWM in the previous works. Moreover, the generation rate of the sub-MHz biphoton source in this work can also compete with those of the sub-MHz biphoton sources of the cold-atom SFWM or cavity-assisted spontaneous parametric down conversion. Here, the biphoton linewidth is tunable for an order of magnitude. As we tuned the linewidth to 610 kHz, the generation rate per linewidth is 1,500 pairs/(s·MHz) and the maximum two-photon correlation function, gs,as(2), of the biphotons is 42. This gs,as(2) violates the Cauchy-Schwarz inequality for classical light by 440 folds, and demonstrates that the biphotons have a high purity. By increasing the pump power by 16 folds, we further enhanced the generation rate per linewidth to 2.3×104 pairs/(s·MHz), while the maximum gs,as(2) became 6.7. In addition, we are able to tune the linewidth down to 290±20 kHz. This is the narrowest linewidth to date among all single-mode biphoton sources of room-temperature and hot media.

Berry anthocyanins prevent α-dicarbonyls and advanced glycation end product formation in phosphate-buffered saline-based model systems, cookie and ground pork.

α-Dicarbonyls and advanced glycation end products (AGEs) are the heat-induced potential toxicants commonly found in thermally processed foods due to the Maillard reaction. Research has shown that both α-dicarbonyls and AGEs can cause oxidative stress and inflammation and have a positive link with several chronic diseases, such as diabetes. This study found that commonly consumed berry fruits exhibited excellent methylglyoxal (MGO)-trapping and antiglycative activities, positively associated with their total phenolic and flavonoid contents. Blackcurrant exhibited the strongest MGO-trapping and antiglycative activities among the tested berry fruits. In addition, we demonstrated that fortification with blackcurrant significantly reduced α-dicarbonyls and AGEs formation in the chocolate cookies and marinated ground pork. Delphinidin and cyanidin glycosides were identified as the primary bioactive compounds of blackcurrant that trapped MGO to form the corresponding mono- and di-MGO adducts. This study suggested that blackcurrant anthocyanins might serve as a novel additive to reduce the consumption of dietary reactive carbonyl species and AGEs from both animal- and plant-derived processed foods. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: The levels of α-dicarbonyls and advanced glycation end products in ground pork and cookies were significantly reduced when fortified with blackcurrant. The blackcurrant anthocyanins might be a novel agent inhibiting α-dicarbonyls and dietary advanced glycation end products formation in thermally processed foods.

Flow and containment characteristics of a sash-less, variable-height inclined air-curtain fume hood.

To increase containment efficiency and reduce energy consumption, a sash-less, variable-height inclined air-curtain fume hood (sIAC hood) was developed and tested by a laser-assisted flow visualization technique and tracer-gas detection method. This novel design requires neither sash nor baffle. The sIAC hood employed the inclined push-pull air-curtain technique and two deflection plates installed on the side walls of the hood to induce a tetra-vortex flow structure. The results of flow visualization showed that the slot for suction flow, offset from the slot for the up-blowing jet, caused the air curtain to incline towards the rear wall, thus enhancing the robustness of the tetra-vortex flow structure. Such a flow structure could reduce the influence of draught and human walk-by across the hood face. The containment around the central area of the hood was isolated by the inclined push-pull air curtain. The pollutants carried by the reverse flow induced by the flow separation were guided by the deflection plates from the side walls towards the rear, thus contributing to the formation of the tetra-vortex flow structure. The up/down movable ceiling positioned the suction slot close to the device's pollutant emission opening, but left room (less than 50 cm) for unrestricted hand movement. Testing was carried out based on the methodology described in EN14175. The results of a static test showed that small face velocities of 0.25 and 0.16 m s(-1) were enough to obtain nearly null leakage levels for low and tall pollutant sources. The results of a traversing plate test showed that the face velocity, 0.32 m s(-1), would cause negligibly small leakage levels. The sIAC hood could obtain significantly higher containment efficiency than a conventional hood by operating at a face velocity significantly lower than that of conventional hoods.

Flow and leakage characteristics of a sashless inclined air-curtain (sIAC) fume hood containing tall pollutant-generation tanks.

In many fume hood applications, pollutant-generation devices are tall. Human operators of a fume hood must stand close to the front of the hood and lift up their hands to reach the top opening of the tall tank. In this situation, it is inconvenient to access the conventional hood because the sash acts as a barrier. Also, the bluff-body wake in front of the operator's chest causes a problem. By using laser-assisted smoke flow visualization and tracer-gas test methods, the present study examines a sashless inclined air-curtain (sIAC) fume hood for tall pollutant-generation tanks, with a mannequin standing in front of the hood face. The configuration of the sIAC fume hood, which had the important element of a backward-inclined push-pull air curtain, was different from conventional configurations. Depending on suction velocity, the backward-inclined air curtain had three characteristic modes: straight, concave, and attachment. A large recirculation bubble covering the area--from the hood ceiling to the work surface--was formed behind the inclined air curtain in the straight and concave modes. In the attachment mode, the inclined air curtain was attached to the rear wall of the hood, about 50 cm from the hood ceiling, and bifurcated into up and down streams. Releasing the pollutants at an altitude above where the inclined air curtain was attached caused the suction slot to directly draw up the pollutants. Releasing pollutants in the rear recirculation bubble created a risk of pollutants' leaking from the hood face. The tracer-gas (SF6) test results showed that operating the sIAC hood in the attachment mode, with the pollutants being released high above the critical altitude, could guarantee almost no leakage, even though a mannequin was standing in front of the sashless hood face.

Quantitation of α-Dicarbonyls, Lysine- and Arginine-Derived Advanced Glycation End Products, in Commercial Canned Meat and Seafood Products.

Commercial sterilization is a thermal processing method commonly used in low-acid canned food products. Meanwhile, heat treatment can significantly promote advanced glycation end product (AGE) formation in foodstuffs. In this research, the validated analytical methods have been developed to quantitate both lysine- and arginine-derived AGEs and their precursors, α-dicarbonyls, in various types of commercial canned meat and seafood products. Methylglyoxal-hydroimidazolone 1 was the most abundant AGEs found in the canned food products, followed by Nε-(carboxyethyl)lysine, Nε-(carboxymethyl)lysine, and glyoxal-hydroimidazolone 1. Correlation analysis revealed that methylglyoxal and glyoxal were only positively associated with the corresponding arginine-derived AGEs, while their correlations with the corresponding lysine-derived AGEs were not significant. Importantly, we demonstrated for the first time that total sugar and carbohydrate contents might serve as the potential markers for the prediction of total AGEs in canned meats and seafoods. Altogether, this study provided a more complete view of AGEs' occurrence in commercial canned food products.

Demonstration of the interaction between two stopped light pulses.

This study reports the first experimental demonstration that two light pulses were made motionless and interacted with each other through a medium. The scheme with motionless light pulses maximizes the interaction time and can achieve a considerable efficiency even below single-photon level. To demonstrate the enhancement of optical nonlinear efficiency, the experiment in this study used the process of one optical pulse switched by another based on the effect of electromagnetically induced transparency. Moving light pulses activate switching at an energy per area of 2 photons per atomic absorption cross section as discussed in [Phys. Rev. Lett. 82, 4611 (1999)]. This study demonstrates that motionless light pulses can activate switching at 0.56 photons per atomic absorption cross section, and that the light level can be further reduced by increasing the optical density of the medium. The result of this work enters a new regime of low-light physics.

Inhibitory effects of rooibos (Aspalathus linearis) against reactive carbonyl species and advanced glycation end product formation in a glucose-bovine serum albumin model and cookies.

In thermally processed foods, several heat-induced toxicants are potentially formed due to the Maillard reaction, such as α-dicarbonyls and advanced glycation end products (AGEs). In the present work, we found that the methylglyoxal (MGO)-trapping and antiglycative activities of the herbal tea samples correlated strongly with their total phenolic and flavonoid contents. Among the tested herbal tea samples, rooibos exhibited the strongest MGO-trapping and antiglycative activities against AGEs formation. Aspalathin, orientin and isoorientin were further identified as the major bioactive compounds of rooibos that scavenged MGO to form the corresponding mono-MGO adducts. Moreover, the contents of dicarbonyls and AGEs in the cookie were remarkably reduced by fortification with rooibos. Altogether, our current findings suggested that rooibos might serve as a functional ingredient to reduce intake of dietary reactive carbonyl species (RCS) and AGEs from thermally processed foods, especially bakery products.

Hepatoprotective effect of piceatannol against carbon tetrachloride-induced liver fibrosis in mice.

Piceatannol (3,5,3',4'-trans-tetrahydroxystilbene) is a natural analog and a metabolite of resveratrol present in grapes and red wine. Previous studies have reported that piceatannol exerts a broad spectrum of health benefits including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, chemopreventive, and neuroprotective effects. However, little is known about the hepatoprotective effect of piceatannol against toxin-induced liver fibrosis. Therefore, the objective of this study is to evaluate the protective effect of piceatannol in a mouse model of CCl4-induced hepatic fibrosis. Oral administration of piceatannol significantly improved the hepatic functions of CCl4-treated mice in both therapeutic and preventive models. Additionally, the immunohistochemical staining results revealed that collagen deposition in CCl4-injected mice was significantly reduced by treatment with piceatannol. Moreover, piceatannol remarkably suppressed the expressions of collagen I, α-smooth muscle protein (α-SMA), and tissue inhibitor of matrix metalloproteinases-1 (TIMP-1) induced by CCl4. The anti-fibrotic mechanism of piceatannol was associated with the regulation of the transforming growth factor-ß (TGF-ß)/Smad signaling pathway. Finally, piceatannol also profoundly alleviated CCl4-induced hepatic oxidative damage by elevating the level of glutathione and catalase activity. Altogether, our current findings suggest that piceatannol may serve as a bioactive agent that inhibits or alleviates toxic-induced fibroproliferative diseases, especially in the prevention of liver fibrosis.

Correction: Hepatoprotective effect of piceatannol against carbon tetrachloride-induced liver fibrosis in mice.

Correction for 'Hepatoprotective effect of piceatannol against carbon tetrachloride-induced liver fibrosis in mice' by Wei-Lun Hung et al., Food Funct., 2021, DOI: 10.1039/D1FO02545G.

Targeting the NLRP3 Inflammasome in Neuroinflammation: Health Promoting Effects of Dietary Phytochemicals in Neurological Disorders.

Neurological disorders occur in the central and peripheral nervous system and include Alzheimer's disease, stroke, and spinal cord injury. Activation of the innate immune system inevitably occurs in all forms of neurological disorders. The NOD-, LRR- and pyrin domain-containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome is a multimolecular complex that can sense danger signals associated with neurological disorders. Assembly of the NLRP3 inflammasome promotes caspase-1-mediated interleukin-1ß and interleukin-18 maturation in microglia, where neuroinflammation contributes to neurological disease development and progression. Thus, this review attempts to elucidate the current knowledge regarding NLRP3 inflammasome activation and its crucial role in the pathogenesis of neurological disorders. Recent scientific findings with respect to neuroprotective effects of dietary phytochemicals against NLRP3 inflammasome-mediated neurological disorders summarized in this review suggest that modulation of the NLRP3 inflammasome assembly by plant-derived phytochemicals could be a potential strategy for prevention or treatment of neurological disorders.

Analysis of flavor and other metabolites in lemon juice (Citrus limon) from Huanglongbing-affected trees grafted on different rootstocks.

Flavor perception integrates sensory input from chemical receptors triggered by taste- and aroma-active metabolites to contribute to food flavor quality. Many factors alter flavor quality. Disease affects aroma and flavonoid constituents, causing off-flavors in plants. Huanglongbing (HLB) disease negatively affects citrus, although lemons are more tolerant. Lemon juice quality of HLB-affected fruits is not well studied. Lemon juice aroma-active compounds were profiled in this study using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry-olfactometry, and other metabolites contributing to overall flavor quality were investigated. Lemon juice from different rootstocks was discriminated using the metabolic profile. Flavor and other lemon juice metabolites also distinguished symptomatic from asymptomatic trees. Pathway enrichment analysis demonstrated that biosynthesis pathways of the Phosphotransferase system (PTS), and Starch and sucrose metabolism involving fructose, glucose and sucrose, were highly influenced by HLB status. This study provides the first comprehensive view of lemon juice metabolites, including alterations resulting from rootstock differences or disease severity.

In older women, a high-protein diet including animal-sourced foods did not impact serum levels and urinary excretion of trimethylamine-N-oxide.

Diets including red meat and other animal-sourced foods may increase proteolytic fermentation and microbial-generated trimethylamine (TMA) and, subsequently, trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO), a metabolite associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease and dementia. It was hypothesized that compared to usual dietary intake, a maintenance-energy high-protein diet (HPD) would increase products of proteolytic fermentation, whereas adjunctive prebiotic, probiotic, and synbiotic supplementation may mitigate these effects. An exploratory aim was to determine the association of the relative abundance of the TMA-generating taxon, Emergencia timonensis, with serum and urinary TMAO. At 5 time points (usual dietary intake, HPD diet, HPD + prebiotic, HPD + probiotic, and HPD + synbiotic), urinary (24-hour) and serum metabolites and fecal microbiota profile of healthy older women (n = 20) were measured by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry and 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing analyses, respectively. The HPD induced increases in serum levels of l-carnitine, indoxyl sulfate, and phenylacetylglutamine but not TMAO or p-cresyl sulfate. Urinary excretion of l-carnitine, indoxyl sulfate, phenylacetylglutamine, and TMA increased with the HPD but not TMAO or p-cresyl sulfate. Most participants had undetectable levels of E.timonensis at baseline and only 50% during the HPD interventions, suggesting other taxa are responsible for the microbial generation of TMA in these individuals. An HPD diet with or without a prebiotic, probiotic, or synbiotic elicited an increase in products of proteolytic fermentation. The urinary l-carnitine response suggests that the additional dietary l-carnitine provided was primarily bioavailable, providing little substrate for microbial conversion to TMA and subsequent TMAO formation.

Determination of citrus juice coumarins, furanocoumarins and methoxylated flavones using solid phase extraction and HPLC with photodiode array and fluorescence detection.

A synergistic combination of analytical techniques was developed for the simultaneous determination of the three most biologically active chemical families in citrus juices: methoxylated flavones, coumarins, and furanocoumarins. No rapid methodology has been available to determine them together. A solid phase extraction concentrated these groups and a ternary reverse phase HPLC gradient completely resolved them from other juice components. Two coumarins, isomeranzin and osthole, were identified in a sweet orange (C. sinensis) cultivar, Changyecheng, for the first time. Pummelo juice was characterized by coumarin and furanocoumarin epoxides such as meranzin and epoxybergamottin. No epoxides were observed in the more acidic juices. Added furanocoumarin epoxides hydrolyzed rapidly in the most acidic juices. The ratios of the UV peak areas at 320 nm to the fluorescence emission peaks as well as the ratio of fluorescence emission peaks at 450-400 nm could be used to identify chromatographic peaks.

From white to beige adipocytes: therapeutic potential of dietary molecules against obesity and their molecular mechanisms.

The global incidence of obesity and its complications continue to rise along with a demand for novel therapeutic approaches. In addition to classic brown adipose tissue (BAT), the formation of brown-like adipocytes called beige adipocytes, within white adipose tissue (WAT), has attracted much attention as a therapeutic target due to its inducible features when stimulated, resulting in the dissipation of extra energy as heat. There are various dietary agents that are able to modulate the beige-development process by interacting with critical molecular signaling cascades, leading to the enhancement of thermogenesis. Although challenges still remain regarding the origin of the beige adipocytes, the crosstalk with activation of BAT and induction of the beiging of white fat may provide attractive potential strategies for management of obesity.

Correction: From white to beige adipocytes: therapeutic potential of dietary molecules against obesity and their molecular mechanisms.

Correction for 'From white to beige adipocytes: therapeutic potential of dietary molecules against obesity and their molecular mechanisms' by Siyu Wang et al., Food Funct., 2019, DOI: 10.1039/c8fo02154f.

Proteomic and metabolomic analyses provide insight into the off-flavour of fruits from citrus trees infected with 'Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus'.

Orange fruit from trees infected by 'Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus' (CaLas) often do not look fully mature and exhibit off-flavours described as bitter, harsh, and metallic rather than juicy and fruity. Although previous studies have been carried out to understand the effect of CaLas on the flavour of orange juice using metabolomic methods, the mechanisms leading to the off-flavour that occurs in Huanglongbing (HLB)-symptomatic fruit are not well understood. In this study, fruits were collected from symptomatic and healthy Valencia sweet orange (Citrus sinensis) trees grafted on Swingle (C. paradisi X Poncirus trifoliata) rootstock. Isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantification (iTRAQ) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) were used to measure the proteins, sugars, organic acids, amino acids, and volatile terpenoids. The results showed that most of the differentially expressed proteins involved in glycolysis, the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle and amino-acid biosynthesis were degraded, and terpenoid metabolism was significantly downregulated in the symptomatic fruit. Valencene, limonene, 3-carene, linalool, myrcene, and α-terpineol levels were significantly lower in fruit from CaLas-infected trees than from healthy trees. Similar phenomena were observed for sucrose and glucose. Our study indicated that off-flavour of symptomatic fruit was associated with a reduction in the levels of terpenoid products and the downregulation of proteins in glycolysis, the TCA cycle, and the terpenoid biosynthesis pathway.

A Targeted Mass Spectrometry-Based Metabolomics Approach toward the Understanding of Host Responses to Huanglongbing Disease.

Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus (CLas) is the major culprit of Huanglongbing (HLB), the most destructive citrus disease worldwide. The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is the most common method for detecting the presence of CLas in the tree. However, due to the uneven distribution of bacteria and a minimum bacterial titer requirement, an infected tree may test false negative. Thus, our current study profiled primary and secondary metabolites of CLas-free leaves harvested from a citrus undercover protection system (CUPS) to prevent a misjudgment of CLas infection. Functional enrichment analysis revealed several metabolic pathways significantly affected by CLas infection, mainly biosynthesis of amino acids and secondary metabolites. Comparisons of CLas-infected metabolite alterations among oranges, mandarins, and grapefruits revealed that host responses to CLas were different. The metabolite signature highlighted in this study will provide a fuller understanding of how CLas bacteria affect the biosynthesis of primary and secondary metabolites in different hosts.

Metabolite Profiling of Candidatus Liberibacter Infection in Hamlin Sweet Oranges.

Huanglongbing (HLB), also known as citrus greening disease, caused by Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus (CLas), is considered the most serious citrus disease in the world. CLas infection has been shown to greatly affect metabolite profiles in citrus fruits. However, because of uneven distribution of CLas throughout the tree and a minimum bacterial titer requirement for polymerase chain reaction (PCR) detection, the infected trees may test false negative. To prevent this, metabolites of healthy Hamlin oranges (CLas-) obtained from the citrus undercover protection systems (CUPS) were investigated. Comparison of the metabolite profile of juice obtained from CLas- and CLas+ (asymptomatic and symptomatic) trees revealed significant differences in both volatile and nonvolatile metabolites. However, no consistent pattern could be observed in alcohols, esters, sesquiterpenes, sugars, flavanones, and limonoids as compared to previous studies. These results suggest that CLas may affect metabolite profiles of citrus fruits earlier than detecting infection by PCR. Citric acid, nobiletin, malic acid, and phenylalanine were identified as the metabolic biomarkers associated with the progression of HLB. Thus, the differential metabolites found in this study may serve as the biomarkers of HLB in its early stage, and the metabolite signature of CLas infection may provide useful information for developing a potential treatment strategy.

Comprehensive Metabolomics Analysis of Mandarins ( Citrus reticulata) as a Tool for Variety, Rootstock, and Grove Discrimination.

The metabolite profile responsible for the quality of mandarin fruit is influenced by preharvest factors including genotype, rootstock, grove location, etc. In this paper, mandarin varieties were discriminated using metabolomics. Additionally, effects on metabolic profiles due to grove location and rootstock differences were also investigated. Results revealed that mandarin varieties could be differentiated using the metabolite profile, while the compositions of flavonoids have the potential for variety differentiation. With regard to fruits of the same variety, grove location might determine the overall profile of metabolites, whereas rootstock possibly affected composition of secondary metabolites. Pathway enrichment analysis demonstrated that biosynthesis pathways of terpenoids and steroids involving limonene and linalool were highly influenced by variety diversity. Moreover, the flavonoid biosynthesis pathway, involving hesperetin, naringenin, eriodictyol, and taxifolin, was indicated to have a close relationship with rootstock differentiation. This study provides useful and important information with depth for breeding and optimizing preharvest practices.