Protective effect of water extracts of Veronicastrum latifolium (Hemsl.) Yamazaki on carbon tetrachloride-induced liver fibrosis in mice and its effect on intestinal flora.

Liver fibrosis refers to a reversible event of repair and reconstruction following injury due to various etiologies, and its continuous development will lead to cirrhosis and liver cancer. Abnormal alterations in intestinal microbiota can hasten the development of hepatic fibrosis and damage. Veronicastrum latifolium (Hemsl.) Yamazaki (VLY) is a classic drug applied extensively for managing acute and chronic hepatitis, liver cirrhosis and ascites in ethnic minority areas of Guizhou Province, China, which possesses broad-spectrum pharmacological activities. In view of the crucial role of intestinal microbiota in the development of liver fibrosis, the present study attempted to investigate the effects of VLY aqueous extract on ameliorating CCl4-elicited liver fibrosis in mice and on intestinal microbiota and to explore its possible mechanism. Phytochemical analysis showed that VLY water extract contained a variety of components, particularly rich in organic acids and their derivatives, flavonoids, phenolic acids, nucleotides and their derivatives, carbohydrates and other compounds. VLY water extract remarkably alleviated CCl4-induced liver damage and fibrosis in mice, improved liver histology, and improved liver function abnormalities. VLY water extract also inhibited the activation of hepatic stellate cells and invasion of intrahepatic inflammatory cells. Additionally, sequencing the 16 s rDNA gene revealed that VLY water extract changed the intestinal microbiota composition in liver fibrotic mice. It elevated the Firmicutes/Bacteroidota ratio and enriched the relative Lactobacillus richness, which is capable of mitigating fibrosis and inflammation in impaired liver. In summary, through modulation of inflammation and intestinal microbiota, VLY water extract can reduce the CCl4-elicited liver fibrosis.

Enhanced MR features of central chronic pulmonary artery thromboembolism and the clinical application value / 中华放射学杂志

Objective:To explore the relationship between the imaging features of enhanced MRI in patients with central chronic pulmonary artery thromboembolism (CPTE) and pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR).Methods:Thirty-nine patients with CPTE who had contrast-enhanced MRI examination were retrospectively enrolled this study from January 2018 to December 2020. And 33 patients who received right heart catheterization were divided into two groups based on PVR=1 000 dyn·s·cm -5. The differences of imaging features of CPTE in enhanced MRI between the two groups were compared. The relationship between gender, duration of disease, age, pleural thickening, bilateral bronchial artery dilation, number of the involved vascular segments, number of thrombosis, number of the thrombus-related delayed enhancement of artery wall and PVR was analyzed by binary logistic regression. Results:In 39 patients with central CPTE, the dilated lumen (168, 43.30%) and delayed enhancement of wall (122, 31.52%) were found in most of pulmonary arteries. The rate of the lumen dilatation associated with thrombus was the highest among that of the lumen abnormality (66, 52.80%). There were more thrombi in PVR<1 000 dyn·s·cm -5 group than those in PVR≥1 000 dyn·s·cm -5 group (χ 2=9.55, P=0.002). There was no significant difference in the incidence of wall delayed enhancement associated the thrombus between the two groups (χ 2=0.90, P=0.344). The incidence of bilateral bronchial arterial dilatation in PVR<1 000 dyn·s·cm -5 group was higher than that in PVR≥1 000 dyn·s·cm -5 group ( P=0.019). Logistic regression analysis showed that female, the less number of involved vascular segments and bilateral bronchial artery dilation were correlated with the lower PVR. Conclusions:Enhanced MRI is helpful to accurately evaluate the lumen abnormality of pulmonary artery and wall remodeling in central CPTE, which is of great value for the assessment of patients′ conditions and treatment effect.

Quality Changes and Shelf-Life Prediction of Cooked Cured Ham Stored at Different Temperatures.

ABSTRACT: Cooked cured ham is a ready-to-eat food that is popular among consumers. Stored temperature has a key effect on the quality and shelf life of ham. In this work, the quality changes and shelf-life prediction of cooked cured ham stored at different temperatures were investigated. Sensory evaluation, physical and chemical indicators, and aerobic plate count were determined. Results showed that high storage temperature of cooked ham accelerates quality deterioration. Partial least squares (PLS) regression analysis based on the variable importance for projection identified nine important variables for predicting the shelf life of cooked cured ham. Compared with either PLS or back-propagation artificial neural network, the hybrid PLS-back-propagation artificial neural network model better predicts the shelf life of cooked cured ham by using the nine variables. This study provides a theoretical basis and data support for the quality control of cooked cured ham and a new idea for research on the shelf-life prediction of cooked cured ham.

Self-assembly preparation of lignin-graphene oxide composite nanospheres for highly efficient Cr(vi) removal.

Recently, research interest in the application of lignin is growing, especially as adsorbent material. However, single lignin shows unsatisfactory adsorption performance, and thus, construction of lignin-based nanocomposites is worth considering. Herein, we introduced graphene oxide (GO) into lignin to form lignin/GO (LGNs) composite nanospheres by a self-assembly method. FTIR and 1H NMR spectroscopy illustrated that lignin and GO are tightly connected by hydrogen bonds. The LGNs as an environmental friendly material, also exhibit excellent performance for Cr(vi) removal. The maximum sorption capacity of LGNs is 368.78 mg g-1, and the sorption efficiency is 1.5 times than that of lignin nanospheres (LNs). The removal process of Cr(vi) via LGNs mainly relies on electrostatic interaction, and it also involves the reduction of Cr(vi) to Cr(iii). Moreover, LGNs still have high adsorption performance after repeating five times with the sorption capacity of 150.4 mg g-1 in 200 mg g-1 Cr(vi) solution. Therefore, the prepared lignin-GO composite nanospheres have enormous potential as a low-cost, high-absorbent and recyclable adsorbent, and can be used in wastewater treatment.

Biochars from Lignin-rich Residue of Furfural Manufacturing Process for Heavy Metal Ions Remediation.

The pentose/furfural industrial manufacturing process uses corn cob residue as a raw material, where such a process yields significant amount of lignin-rich residue (LCR) at the end, which is commonly disposed by burning. In this study, the conversion of LCR to biochars (BCs), and their subsequent applications for heavy metal ion removal, were investigated. The BCs were prepared through hydrothermal carbonization and post-activation, using either ZnCl2 or H3PO4 treatment. The as-prepared activated BCs were characterized using N2 adsorption-desorption isotherms, XRD, FT-IR, SEM and TEM, and their performance in removing heavy metal ions (Pb2+, Cu2+, Cd2+) from aqueous solutions was assessed. The ZnCl2-activated BCs (BC-ZnCl2) exhibit a higher adsorption capacity than the H3PO4-activated BCs (BC-H3PO4), mainly due to the differences in their chemical/physical characteristics. The related adsorption kinetics and isotherms were analyzed.

Comparative Evaluation of Organic Acid Pretreatment of Eucalyptus for Kraft Dissolving Pulp Production.

Pretreatment is an essential process for the extensive utilization of lignocellulose materials. The effect of four common organic acid pretreatments for Kraft dissolving pulp production was comparatively investigated. It was found that under acidic conditions, hemicellulose can be effectively removed and more reducing sugars can be recovered. During acetic acid pretreatment, lignin that was dissolved in acetic acid could form a lignin-related film which would alleviate cellulose hydrolysis, while other organic acids caused severe cellulose degradation. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray diffractometry (XRD) were used to characterize the pretreated chips in the process. Lignin droplets were attached to the surface of the treated wood chips according to the SEM results. The FTIR spectrum showed that the lignin peak signal becomes stronger, and the hemicellulose peak signal becomes weaker with acid pretreatment. The XRD spectrum demonstrated that the crystallinity index of the wood chips increased. The acetic acid pretreatment process-assisted Kraft process achieved higher yield (31.66%) and higher α-cellulose (98.28%) than any other organic acid pretreatment. Furthermore, extensive utilization of biomass was evaluated with the acetic acid pretreatment-assisted Kraft process. 43.8% polysaccharide (12.14% reducing sugar and 31.66% dissolving pulp) and 22.24% lignin (0.29% acetic acid lignin and 21.95% sulfate lignin) were recovered during the process. Biomass utilization could reach 66.04%. Acetic acid pretreatment is a promising process for extensive biomass utilization.

Effects of replacing fat with Perilla seed on the characteristics of meatballs.

A portion of the fat used in the preparation of meatballs was replaced with different amounts of Perilla seeds rich in unsaturated fatty acids. Five treatments with mass percentages of 0%, 5%, 10%, 15%, and 20%, including a set of blank treatment and four groups treated with different Perilla seed contents, were performed. The effects of Perilla seed content on the proximate composition, pH, color, cooking yield, emulsion stability, texture, fatty acid composition, and sensory properties of meatballs were analyzed. The meatballs with Perilla seeds showed remarkably better properties than those without seeds. The addition of 10% (w/w) Perilla seeds significantly (P < 0.05) improved the texture, composition, and content of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), dietary fiber, and protein in meatballs. Moreover, the characteristic flavor components were rich and varied, which enhanced the taste, flavor, and satiety of the meatballs. This work provided theoretical and data support for the preparation of Perilla meatballs rich in PUFAs and dietary fiber.

Neurosyphilis mimicking viral encephalitis: report of 4 cases / 中华全科医师杂志

The clinical data of 4 patients with atypical neurosyphilis (NS) mimicking viral encephalitis (VE) admitted to Beijing Ditan Hospital from July 2015 to January 2020 were retrospectively analyzed. All the 4 patients were males with an average age of (43±8) years. The patients manifested with mental and behavior disorders and cognitive impairment. Three patients had epilepsy and 1 patient had fever. The treponemal pallidum particle agglutination (TPPA) , fluorescent treponemal antibody-absorption test (FTA-ABS) -IgG and toluidine red unheated serum test (TRUST) were all positive in blood and the cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) , and white blood cell count and protein level in CSF were all evaluated. The head MRIs were all abnormal, 3 of which showed hyperintensity in fluid attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) and T2-weighted image located in limbic system and 1 showed hyperintensity in the bilateral cortex and the subcortical areas. All patients improved evidently and the lesions became smaller after penicillin treatment. Atypical NS mimicking VE is rare, and at early diagnosis and timely treatments can contribute to a good clinical prognosis.

Expression of FFAR4 gene in primary hepatocellular carcinoma and its clinical significance / 临床与实验病理学杂志

Purpose To investigate the expression and clinical significance of free fatty acid receptor 4 (FFAR4) in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) . Methods The expression of FFAR4 in HCC tissues and adjacent tissues of HCC patients was confirmed by 102 cases of liver resection and postoperative pathology, and the relationship between FFAR4 expression and clinical data of HCC patients was analyzed. Quantitative realtime PCR (qRT-PCR) and Western blot were used to detect the expression of FFAR4 in 20 pairs of freshly frozen HCC and adjacent tissues,and the related literatures were reviewed. Results The expression rate of FFAR4 in HCC tissues was 64. 7％ (66/102) ,and that in adjacent tissues was 15. 7％ (16/102) . The difference in FFAR4 expression between the two groups was statistically significant (P < 0. 05) . The high expression of FFAR4 in HCC tissues was significantly correlated with tumor vascular invasion (P < 0. 05) ,TNM stage (P < 0. 01) ,and Edmondson classification (P < 0. 05) . qRT-PCR and Western blot showed that the expression of FFAR4 in HCC tissues was significantly higher than that in adjacent tissues. The difference between the two groups was statistically significant (P < 0. 01,P< 0. 05) . Conclusion The expression of FFAR4 is significantly associated with the presence of vascular invasion,TNM staging, and Edmondson grading in HCC. High expression of FFAR4 may be closely related to the severity of HCC patients.

Assessing the proximal pulmonary artery hemodynamic in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension by 3.0 T MRI / 中华放射学杂志

Objective To compare the blood flow characteristics of the proximal pulmonary arteries in patients with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) and idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension (IPAH) by 3.0T PC-MRI. Methods Twenty seven patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (7 IPAH patients and 20 CTEPH patients) were prospectively included. Twenty healthy volunteers were enrolled as the control group. All subjects underwent PC-MRI. PC-MRI derived parameters included peak, mean velocity and mean flow of main pulmonary artery (MPA), left/right pulmonary artery (LPA/RPA), left/right interlobar pulmonary artery (LIPA/RIPA). Right heart catheterization was performed in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension. The parameters among CTEPH, IPAH group and control group were compared by one way analysis of variance. Results There were significant differences for peak velocity, mean velocity and mean flow among CTEPH, IPAH group and control group (F=4.13—102.81, all P<0.05). There was significant difference for peak velocity in RPA between CTEPH[(32.0 ± 7.8)cm/s] and IPAH group[(50.0±15.0)cm/s]. There was no difference for mean velocity between CTEPH and IPAH group. The mean flow between CTEPH and IPAH group was statistically different[MPA: (74.3 ± 20.8) ml/s versus (61.3±16.7) ml/s, LPA:(29.3±12.7) ml/s versus (23.2±11.2) ml/s, RPA:(43.5±17.4) ml/s versus (56.8±13.5) ml/s, LIPA: (19.2 ± 8.0) ml/s versus (12.1 ± 5.8) ml/s, all P<0.05]. Conclusion There is significantly different characteristics for the hemodynamics of the proximal pulmonary arteries between CTEPH group and IPAH group. 3.0T PC-MRI may effectively detect the pulmonary hemodynamic changes.

Serum Bilirubin and 6-min Walk Distance as Prognostic Predictors for Inoperable Chronic Thromboembolic Pulmonary Hypertension: A Prospective Cohort Study / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>Inoperable chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) is a severe clinical syndrome characterized by right cardiac failure and possibly subsequent liver dysfunction. However, whether serum markers of liver dysfunction can predict prognosis in inoperable CTEPH patients has not been determined. Our study aimed to evaluate the potential role of liver function markers (such as serum levels of transaminase, bilirubin, and gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase [GGT]) combined with 6-min walk test in the prediction of prognosis in patients with inoperable CTEPH.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>From June 2005 to May 2013, 77 consecutive patients with inoperable CTEPH without confounding co-morbidities were recruited for this prospective cohort study. Baseline clinical characteristics and 6-min walk distance (6MWD) results were collected. Serum biomarkers of liver function, including levels of aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, GGT, uric acid, and serum bilirubin, were also determined at enrollment. All-cause mortality was recorded during the follow-up period.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>During the follow-up, 22 patients (29%) died. Cox regression analyses demonstrated that increased serum concentration of total bilirubin (hazard ratio [HR] = 7.755, P < 0.001), elevated N-terminal of the prohormone brain natriuretic peptide (HR = 1.001, P = 0.001), decreased 6MWD (HR = 0.990, P < 0.001), increased central venous pressure (HR = 1.074, P = 0.040), and higher pulmonary vascular resistance (HR = 1.001, P = 0.018) were associated with an increased risk of mortality. Serum concentrations of total bilirubin (HR = 4.755, P = 0.007) and 6MWD (HR = 0.994, P = 0.017) were independent prognostic predictors for CTEPH patients. Patients with hyperbilirubinemia (≥23.7 μmol/L) had markedly worse survival than those with normobilirubinemia.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Elevated serum bilirubin and decreased 6MWD are potential predictors for poor prognosis in inoperable CTEPH.</p>