Study on the effect and mechanism of Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus AFY06 on inflammation-associated colorectal cancer induced by AOM/DSS in mice.

Introduction: Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus AFY06 (LR-AFY06) is a microorganism isolated from naturally fermented yogurt in Xinjiang, China. Methods: In this study, we investigated the effects and mechanisms of LR-AFY06 in a mouse model of inflammation-associated colon cancer. The mouse model was established by azoxymethane/dextran sulfate sodium (AOM/DSS) induction. The tumor number in intestinal tissues was counted, and the histopathological analysis was performed on colon tissues. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction were performed to measure relevant protein levels in colon tissues. Results: LR-AFY06 treatment alleviated weight loss, increased organ index, reduced intestinal tumor incidence, improved histopathological damage, decreased the levels of inflammatory cytokines such as interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-1 beta (IL-1ß), tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), nuclear factor κB (NF-κB), and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) in the serum and colon tissue, downregulated the mRNA expression of inhibitor of NF-κB beta (IκBß), p65, p50, p52, B-cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2), and B-cell lymphoma-extra large (Bcl-xL) in colon tissues, and increased the mRNA expression of Bid and caspase-8. The high concentration of LR-AFY06 exerted a better effect than the low concentration; however, the effect was slightly inferior to that of aspirin. Moreover, LR-AFY06 mitigated the intestinal inflammatory process and inhibited intestinal tumor development by regulating the NF-κB and apoptosis pathways. Discussion: The present study indicates the regulatory potential of LR-AFY06 in inflammation-associated colorectal cancer in mice, providing a valuable basis for further research.

Case Report: Successful Treatment of Cerebral Phaeohyphomycosis with Voriconazole: A Case Report and Literature Review.

Fonsecaea monophora is a species of Fonsecaea that belongs to Chaetothyriales. It is usually isolated from tropical and subtropical regions, causing reactive inflammation, skin abscesses, and pain. Cerebral infection caused by F. monophora is rare but often fatal. Diagnosing this disease at an early stage is difficult, and appropriate antifungal therapy is often delayed as a result. We report the case of a 53-year-old woman with type 2 diabetes who presented with a headache 2 months ago and progressive right-sided weakness of 1 month's duration. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed a space-occupying lesion in the left frontal lobe and corpus callosum. The cystic mass was removed by surgical intervention, and the identification of the sample based on sequencing of the internal transcribed spaced region in BLAST-N search showed that the sequences producing most significant alignments were F. monophora or similar (query cover 99%, E value 0.0, per ident 99.84). The patient was treated with a 3-month course of twice daily voriconazole, leading to complete recovery.

Dihydroartemisinin enhances gefitinib cytotoxicity against lung adenocarcinoma cells by inducing ROS-dependent apoptosis and ferroptosis.

The application of epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors (EGFR-TKIs), such as gefitinib, has shifted lung cancer treatment from empirical chemotherapy to targeted molecular therapy. However, acquired drug resistance is inevitable in almost all non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients treated with gefitinib. Combined treatment with dihydroartemisinin (DHA) and gefitinib produced a better inhibitory effect on lung adenocarcinoma than gefitinib treatment alone; however, the specific mechanism remains unclear. In this study, we aimed to assess the underlying mechanism of this combination treatment. We prepared gefitinib-resistant A549 cells and investigated whether apoptosis and ferroptosis were involved in the sensitizing effect of DHA. Treatment with 5 µM gefitinib resulted in rupturing and floatation of A549 cells in the medium, while A549-GR cells were found to be insusceptible to gefitinib. However, treatment with DHA substantially inhibited the proliferation of A549-GR cells in a dose-dependent manner accompanied by increased apoptosis and ferroptosis. The accumulated reactive oxygen species (ROS) was crucial for the inhibitory effect of DHA on A549-GR cells. Moreover, cellular autophagy was significantly upregulated post-DHA treatment. The combined treatment of DHA and gefitinib resulted in inhibition of proliferation of A549, H1975, and HCC827 cells, and ROS accumulation and a remarkable induction of apoptosis was observed in A549-GR cells. DHA significantly induced apoptosis and ferroptosis in a dose-dependent manner and exhibited high cellular toxicity on A549-GR cells when combined with gefitinib.

Biomass ash pyrolyzed from municipal sludge and its adsorption performance toward tetracycline: effect of pyrolysis temperature and KOH activation.

Large amount of municipal sludge is difficult to handle; its resource utilization is an effective measure. In this study, the municipal sludge from sewage treatment plant was pyrolyzed without gas protection at different temperatures and potassium hydroxide (KOH) concentrations for activation. The pyrolysis products, named biomass ash, with higher surface area and enriched pore structures could be obtained at the pyrolysis temperature of 773 K. Moreover, the KOH activation for raw municipal sludge could further increase the surface area of the pyrolysis biomass ash. The maximum specific surface area was 44.71 m2/g, which was obtained under 2 mol/L KOH activation before pyrolysis at 773 K. And in this situation, the obtained pyrolysis biomass ash as adsorbent showed the maximum adsorption capacity of 50.75 mg/g toward tetracycline (TC). Moreover, the TC adsorption onto pyrolysis biomass ash obtained under various conditions followed the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. Adsorption thermodynamics analysis suggested the TC adsorption onto the pyrolysis biomass ash with no pre-activation was mainly due to the multi-molecule heterogeneous adsorption, while the TC adsorption onto pyrolysis biomass ash pretreated through the activation of KOH followed the monomer adsorption mechanism. This different adsorption mechanism was largely related to the pore structure, polarity, and aromaticity of the adsorbent.

[Synthesis of baicalin-copper and baicalin-aluminium complex and its bioactivity].

OBJECTIVE: To study synthesis of baicalin-copper and baicalin-aluminium complex and its antimicrobial, anti-tumor activity and anti-tumor effect against macrophages. METHOD: Baicalin was reacted with metallic salt under a weak base condition to produce baicalin-copper and baicalin-aluminium complex. Baicalin and its synthesized complex were detected for antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureus, Hay bacillus, Escherichia coli, Salmonella and Candida albicans by twofold broth dilution technique. Their anti-tumor activity against A549 and IC50 of HepG2 cells and anti-tumor effect against macrophages were detected by the MTT. And their phagocytic effect on macrophages was determined by the neutral red assay. RESULT: The yields of baicalin-copper and baicalin-aluminium complex were 73.93% and 91.08%, respectively. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) value against Staphylococcus aureus, Hay bacillus, Escherichia coli, Salmonella and Candida albicans was 0.0004, 0.0009, 0.0004, 0.0009, 0.000 4 mol x L(-1) for baicalin-copper complex and 0.0011, 0.0011, 0.0011, 0.0011, 0.0005 mol x L(-1) for baicalin-aluminium complex. The IC50 values against A549 and HepG2 cells were 89.6, 22.6 micromol x L(-1) for baicalin-copper complex, and 138.8, 97.2 micromol x L(-1) for baicalin-aluminium complex. The inhibitory ratio of macrophage on A549 cell was 43.52%, 80.89%, 52.66%, respectively, after the macrophages were stimulated by baicalin, baicalin-copper and baicalin-aluminium complex at a concentration of 160 micromol x L(-1). CONCLUSION: The acute toxicity test in mice showed that the complex was nontoxic to mice. Baicalin-copper complex showed the highest antimicrobial, anti-tumor activity, and the strongest effect on the anti-tumor activity of macrophage, while baicalin showed the lowest activities compared with baicalin-copper and baicalin-aluminium complex.