The role of uterus mitochondrial function in high-fat diet-related adverse pregnancy outcomes and protection by resveratrol.

This study elucidates the mechanism of obesity-related adverse pregnancy outcomes and further investigates the effect of resveratrol on reproductive performance in a short- or long-term HFD-induced obese mouse model. Results show that maternal weight had a significant positive correlation with litter mortality in mice. A long-term HFD increased body weight and litter mortality with decreased expression of uterine cytochrome oxidase 4 (COX4), which was recovered by resveratrol in mice. Moreover, HFD decreased the expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ coactivator-1α (PGC-1α), nuclear respiratory factors-1 (Nrf-1), and phosphorylated adenosine 5'-monophosphate (AMP)-activated protein kinase (p-AMPK) and increased the expression of phosphorylated extracellular regulated protein kinases (p-ERK) in the uterus. Resveratrol, a polyphenol that can directly bind to the ERK protein, suppressed the phosphorylation of ERK, increased the expression of p-AMPK, PGC-1α and Nrf-1, and decreased litter mortality in mice.

Effects of main active components of rosemary on growth performance, meat quality and lipid metabolism in finishing pigs.

Rosemary extracts have been widely used as feed additives in recent years. This study aimed to investigate the effects of rosmarinic acid (RA) and ursolic acid (UA), the main active components of rosemary, on growth performance, meat quality and lipid metabolism in finishing pigs. A total of 72 finishing pigs (Landrace; initial age of 150 d) were randomly divided into 3 treatments with 8 replicates of 3 pigs each, and fed a basal diet or diet containing 500 mg/kg of RA or UA. The results showed that dietary supplementation of RA or UA had no significant effect on the growth performance and carcass traits of finishing pigs (P > 0.05). However, both RA and UA significantly increased the triglyceride (TG) level in soleus muscle (P < 0.001). Supplementation of RA increased the expression of genes related to lipogenesis and transport including fatty acid synthase (FAS) (P < 0.001), sterol regulatory element binding protein-1c (SREBP1c) (P < 0.001) and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ) (P < 0.05), while UA increased the expression of fatty acid transport protein 1 (FATP1), a gene related to lipid uptake (P < 0.05). However, RA reduced the expression of adipogenesis-related gene acetyl-coenzyme A carboxylase α (ACCα) (P < 0.01). Characterization of cecal microbiota indicated that RA increased the microbial richness (chao 1, P < 0.001) and diversity (observed species, P < 0.01). Further analysis of the genera revealed that RA increased the relative abundance of Bacteroides and g-UCG-005 (P < 0.05), and UA enriched Prevotella (P < 0.001). Correlation analysis showed that g-UCG-005 was positively correlated with the expression of FAS, carnitine palmitoyl transferase 1B (CPT1B), SREBP1c and PPARγ (P < 0.01). In conclusion, dietary supplementation of RA or UA may increase fat deposition in muscle of finishing pigs by regulating lipid metabolism and gut microbiota.

Effect of dietary resveratrol on placental function and reproductive performance of late pregnancy sows.

Placental function is vital to the fetal growth of sows, and resveratrol (RES) can protect cells against oxidative stress, which is one of the major factors impairing placental function. This study aimed to investigate the effect of dietary resveratrol (RES) on placental function and reproductive performance during late pregnancy in a sow model from the aspects of oxidative stress, insulin resistance, and gut microbiota. A total of 26 hybrid pregnant sows (Landrace × Yorkshire) with similar parity were randomly allocated into two groups (n = 13) and fed with a basal diet or a diet containing 200 mg/kg of resveratrol from day 85 of gestation until parturition. The dietary supplementation of RES increased the litter weight at parturition by 12.53% (p = 0.145), with ameliorated insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), increased triglyceride (TG) levels, and decreased interleukin (IL)-1ß and IL-6 levels in serum (p < 0.05). Moreover, resveratrol increased the placental vascular density (p < 0.05) with the enhanced expression of nutrient transporter genes (SLC2A1 and SLC2A3) and antioxidant genes, such as superoxide dismutase 2 (SOD2) and heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) but declined the expression of inflammatory genes, such as IL-1ß and IL-6 (p < 0.05). The characterization of the fecal microbiota revealed that resveratrol decreased the relative abundance of the Christensensllaceae R-7 group and Ruminococcaceae UCG-008 (p < 0.05), which had a positive linear correlation with the expression of IL-1ß and IL-6 (p < 0.05), but had a negative linear correlation with the expression of SOD2, HO-1, SLC2A1, and SCL2A3 genes (p < 0.05). These data demonstrated that dietary supplementation with resveratrol can improve placental function with ameliorated insulin resistance, oxidative stress, and inflammation potentially by regulating Ruminococcaceae UCG-008 and the Christensensllaceae R-7 group in sows.

Dietary ß-Carotene on Postpartum Uterine Recovery in Mice: Crosstalk Between Gut Microbiota and Inflammation.

As the precursor of vitamin A, ß-carotene has a positive effect on reproductive performance. Our previous study has shown that ß-carotene can increase antioxidant enzyme activity potentially through regulating gut microbiota in pregnant sows. This study aimed to clarify the effect of ß-carotene on reproductive performance and postpartum uterine recovery from the aspect of inflammation and gut microbiota by using a mouse model. Twenty-seven 6 weeks old female Kunming mice were randomly assigned into 3 groups (n=9), and fed with a diet containing 0, 30 or 90 mg/kg ß-carotene, respectively. The results showed that dietary supplementation of ß-carotene reduced postpartum uterine hyperemia and uterine mass index (P<0.05), improved intestinal villus height and villus height to crypt depth ratio, decreased serum TNF-α and IL-4 concentration (P<0.05), while no differences were observed in litter size and litter weight among three treatments. Characterization of gut microbiota revealed that ß-carotene up-regulated the relative abundance of genera Akkermansia, Candidatus Stoquefichus and Faecalibaculum, but down-regulated the relative abundance of Alloprevotella and Helicobacter. Correlation analysis revealed that Akkermansia was negatively correlated with the IL-4 concentration, while Candidatus Stoquefichus and Faecalibaculum had a negative linear correlation with both TNF-α and IL-4 concentration. On the other hand, Alloprevotella was positively correlated with the TNF-α, and Helicobacter had a positive correlation with both TNF-α and IL-4 concentration. These data demonstrated that dietary supplementation of ß-carotene contributes to postpartum uterine recovery by decreasing postpartum uterine hemorrhage and inhibiting the production of inflammatory cytokines potentially through modulating gut microbiota.

Modulation of Gut Microbiota and Oxidative Status by ß-Carotene in Late Pregnant Sows.

Recent evidences suggest that gut microbiota plays an important role in regulating physiological and metabolic activities of pregnant sows, and ß-carotene has a potentially positive effect on reproduction, but the impact of ß-carotene on gut microbiota in pregnant sows remains unknown. This study aimed to explore the effect and mechanisms of ß-carotene on the reproductive performance of sows from the aspect of gut microbiota. A total of 48 hybrid pregnant sows (Landrace × Yorkshire) with similar parity were randomly allocated into three groups (n = 16) and fed with a basal diet or a diet containing 30 or 90 mg/kg of ß-carotene from day 90 of gestation until parturition. Dietary supplementation of 30 or 90 mg/kg ß-carotene increased the number of live birth to 11.82 ± 1.54 and 12.29 ± 2.09, respectively, while the control group was 11.00 ± 1.41 (P = 0.201). Moreover, ß-carotene increased significantly the serum nitric oxide (NO) level and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity (P < 0.05). Characterization of fecal microbiota revealed that 90 mg/kg ß-carotene increased the diversity of the gut flora (P < 0.05). In particular, ß-carotene decreased the relative abundance of Firmicutes including Lachnospiraceae AC2044 group, Lachnospiraceae NK4B4 group and Ruminococcaceae UCG-008, but enriched Proteobacteria including Bilophila and Sutterella, and Actinobacteria including Corynebacterium and Corynebacterium 1 which are related to NO synthesis. These data demonstrated that dietary supplementation of ß-carotene may increase antioxidant enzyme activity and NO, an important vasodilator to promote the neonatal blood circulation, through regulating gut microbiota in sows.

Ultra-high capacity for three-dimensional optical data storage inside transparent fluorescent tape: erratum.

In Opt. Lett.45, 1535 (2020)OPLEDP0146-959210.1364/OL.387278, there was an error regarding the corresponding author assignment. That error is corrected here.

Zn2+ responsive fluorescence enhancement for optical data storage.

In this paper, we put forward a new application in optical data storage (ODS) of tetraphenylethene (TPE)-doped photopolymer, which has an aggregation-induced emission attribute. The photopolymer host reacted with the excitation light at the focal point of a high numerical-aperture lens to enhance the fluorescence intensity mainly because of the function of the ${{\rm Zn}^{2 + }}$Zn2+ ion. We recorded data inside the photopolymer matrix by using this property and had distinct fluorescence intensity contrast between the photochemical regions and other regions. This attribute paves a new way for superresolution ODS and opens the way to exploring the possibility of utilizing TPE-doped photopolymers as chemical sensors in the future.

Ultra-high capacity for three-dimensional optical data storage inside transparent fluorescent tape.

In this Letter, we show an ultralarge capacity for three-dimensional optical data storage inside transparent fluorescent tape using the two-photon absorption photo-bleaching method. We can obtain transparent fluorescent tape by means of the simple dip method. We successfully demonstrate recording and reading of six layers of binary data bits with lateral separation of 2 µm and longitudinal layer separation of 3 µm. Thus, this result leads to a storage density of approximately ${80}\;{{\rm Gbits/cm}^3}$80Gbits/cm3. Therefore, we can realize authentic ultrahigh capacity optical data storage using long transparent fluorescent tape in the future, like magnetic tape, and fundamentally solve the data explosion disaster.

Focal-length-tunable elastomer-based liquid-filled plano-convex mini lens.

A liquid plano-convex lens with focal length tuning is proposed, which is formed by sinking an oil droplet onto the bottom of an elastomer. A simple and low-cost fabrication method is presented. The lens aperture and initial focal length can be controlled during the fabrication. Furthermore, focal length tuning is demonstrated. The lens made of a 40 mg oil droplet can achieve the tuning range from 12 to 17 mm. The effective aperture of the lens is about 2.8 mm. In the demonstration of an imaging system, the lens assists in focusing and a clear image can be observed.