The volatile oil of Hyssopus cuspidatus Boriss. (HVO) ameliorates OVA-induced allergic asthma via inhibiting PI3K/Akt/JNK/P38 signaling pathway and maintaining airway barrier integrity.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Hyssopus cuspidatus Boriss., a classic Uyghur medicine, is used to treat inflammatory lung diseases such as asthma. But the therapeutic effect and mechanism of the volatile oil of Hyssopus cuspidatus Boriss.(HVO) in asthma therapy remain unclear. AIM OF THE STUDY: We aim to characterize the constituents of HVO, investigate the therapeutic effect in OVA-induced allergic asthmatic mice and further explore the molecular mechanism. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this study, we applied two-dimensional gas chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC × GC-QTOF MS) to identify the ingredients of HVO. We established OVA-induced asthmatic model to investigate the therapeutic effect of HVO. To further explore the potential molecular pathways, we used network pharmacology approach to perform GO and KEGG pathways enrichment, and then built an ingredient-target-pathway network to identify key molecular pathways. Finally, LPS-induced RAW 264.7 macrophages and OVA-induced asthmatic model were used to validate the potential signaling pathways. RESULTS: GC × GC-QTOF MS analysis revealed the presence of 123 compounds of HVO. The sesquiterpenes and monoterpenes are the main constituents. The in vivo study indicated that HVO suppressed OVA-induced eosinophilic infiltration in lung tissues, inhibited the elevation of IgE, IL-4, IL-5, and IL-13 levels, downregulated the expressions of phosphorylated PI3K, Akt, JNK and P38, and maintained epithelial barrier integrity via reducing the degradation of occludin, Zo-1, Zo-2, and E-cadherin. The in vitro study also revealed an inhibition of NO release and downregulation of phosphorylated PI3K, Akt, JNK and P38 levels. CONCLUSION: HVO alleviates airway inflammation in OVA-induced asthmatic mice by inhibiting PI3K/Akt/JNK/P38 signaling pathway and maintaining airway barrier integrity via reducing the degradation of occludin, Zo-1, Zo-2, and E-cadherin.

Effective substances and molecular mechanisms guided by network pharmacology: An example study of Scrophulariae Radix treatment of hyperthyroidism and thyroid hormone-induced liver and kidney injuries.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Scrophulariae Radix (Xuanshen [XS]) has been used for several years to treat hyperthyroidism. However, its effective substances and pharmacological mechanisms in the treatment of hyperthyroidism and thyroid hormone-induced liver and kidney injuries have not yet been elucidated. AIM OF THE STUDY: This study aimed to explore the pharmacological material basis and potential mechanism of XS therapy for hyperthyroidism and thyroid hormone-induced liver and kidney injuries based on network pharmacology prediction and experimental validation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Based on 31 in vivo XS compounds identified using ultra-performance liquid chromatography tandem quadruple exactive orbitrap high-resolution accurate-mass spectrometry (UPLC-QE-HRMS), a network pharmacology approach was used for mechanism prediction. Systematic networks were constructed to identify the potential molecular targets, biological processes (BP), and signaling pathways. A component-target-pathway network was established. Mice were administered levothyroxine sodium through gavage for 30 d and then treated with different doses of XS extract with or without propylthiouracil (PTU) for 30 d. Blood, liver, and kidney samples were analyzed using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and western blotting. RESULTS: A total of 31 prototypes, 60 Phase I metabolites, and 23 Phase II metabolites were tentatively identified in the plasma of rats following the oral administration of XS extract. Ninety-six potential common targets between the 31 in vivo compounds and the diseases were identified. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis revealed that Bcl-2, BAD, JNK, p38, and ERK1/2 were the top targets. XS extract with or without PTU had the following effects: inhibition of T3/T4/fT3/fT4 caused by levothyroxine; increase of TSH levels in serum; restoration of thyroid structure; improvement of liver and kidney structure and function by elevating the activities of anti-oxidant enzymes catalase (CAT),superoxide dismutase (SOD), and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px); activation anti-apoptotic proteins Bcl-2; inhibition the apoptotic protein p-BAD; downregulation inflammation-related proteins p-ERK1/2, p-JNK, and p-p38; and inhibition of the aggregation of pro-inflammatory cytokines TNF-α, IL-1ß, and IL-6, as well as immune cells in the liver. CONCLUSION: XS can be used to treat hyperthyroidism and liver and kidney injuries caused by thyroid hormones through its anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-apoptotic properties. In addition, serum pharmacochemical analysis revealed that five active compounds, namely 4-methylcatechol, sugiol, eugenol, acetovanillone, and oleic acid, have diverse metabolic pathways in vivo and exhibit potential as effective therapeutic agents.

Reducing the potential allergenicity of amandin through binding to (-)-epigallocatechin gallate.

Potential allergenicity of amandin was reduced by binding amandin with (-)-epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) via alkaline, free radical, ultrasound-assisted alkaline, and ultrasound-assisted free radical methods. These results of total phenol content, free sulfhydryl group, free amino group, surface hydrophobicity, and sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) indicated that amandin might be covalently bound to EGCG through reactive groups such as sulfhydryl and amino groups, or non-covalently through hydrophobic interactions. Fourier transformed infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy and fluorescence spectroscopy revealed structural changes of amandin-EGCG conjugate, which also caused significant reduction in potential allergenicity of amandin. Liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) found that amandin bound to EGCG mainly through cysteine and glutamate residues, and linear epitope for amandin was reduced. This provided a new method and theoretical basis of hypoallergenic almond food.

Efficient reclamation phosphate by alginate-g-BMOF using poly(N-isopropyl acrylamide-co-acrylamide) as coating for temperature-responsive slow-release P-fertilizer.

Poly(N-isopropyl acrylamide) and its derived copolymer, as a temperature-responsive material, are widely used in the field of anticancer drug carrier. And it also plays an important role as carrier in slow-release fertilizer in recent years. In this paper, a smart poly(N-isopropyl acrylamide-co-acrylamide)-coated Alg-BMOF (PABMOF) was fabricated in ionic liquids microemulsion ([Bmim]PF6/TX-100/water) as nano-reactor. The structure and morphology of PABMOF were characterized by FT-IR, XRD, XPS, SEM, TG and BET. The resultant PABMOF was used as a adsorbent for H2PO4- adsorption. The adsorption kinetics, isotherms and mechanism of H2PO4- onto the resultant PABMOF were studied. The adsorption kinetic data was well suitable for pseudo-second-order kinetic model, and adsorption isotherm results demonstrated that the equilibrium data was fitted for Freundlich model. The water-holding and water-retention capacity of soil with TRSRFs addition of 2 wt% were74.3% and 52.13% at 30th day, respectively. Moreover, the release behavior of TRSRFs in water show that the cumulative release rate (Cr%) were 81.4% at 45 °C and 97.6% at 25 °C within 172 h, which displayed the excellent temperature-responsive property. The effect of TRSRFs on the growth of Chinese cabbage was investigated, which was indexed with the germination rate, plant height and root length of the crop.

Preparation of Fe-filled MOF-Al-based hydrogel for efficient reclaim of phosphate from wastewater and reusing as a slow-release fertilizer.

In this study, a novel Fe-filled MOF-Al-based hydrogel (SA@Fe@MOF-Al) was prepared and characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, thermogravimetric analysis. The SA@Fe@MOF-Al hydrogel bead was used as an adsorbent to adsorb H2PO4- from wastewater. The effects on adsorption were investigated, including pH and coexist ion. The adsorption reached equilibrium within 30 min. The maximum H2PO4- adsorption capacity of SA@Fe@MOF-Al was 103.09 mg g-1 at 298K with pH 7.0. Meanwhile, thermodynamic results confirmed that adsorption is exothermic and spontaneous. The adsorption kinetics displayed that SA@Fe@MOF-Al adsorption process was suitable to the pseudo-first-order and Langmuir model. Moreover, the feasibility of reusing the P-laden carrier material as a slow-release fertilizer was determined. The study results indicated that the product demonstrated excellent slow-release and water-retention properties. Thus, it has potential applications in improving soil moisture content and reducing soil moisture evaporation rate.

Proteome analysis of the almond kernel (Prunus dulcis).

BACKGROUND: Almond (Prunus dulcis) is a popular tree nut worldwide and offers many benefits to human health. However, the importance of almond kernel proteins in the nutrition and function in human health requires further evaluation. The present study presents a systematic evaluation of the proteins in the almond kernel using proteomic analysis. RESULTS: The nutrient and amino acid content in almond kernels from Xinjiang is similar to that of American varieties; however, Xinjiang varieties have a higher protein content. Two-dimensional electrophoresis analysis demonstrated a wide distribution of molecular weights and isoelectric points of almond kernel proteins. A total of 434 proteins were identified by LC-MS/MS, and most were proteins that were experimentally confirmed for the first time. Gene ontology (GO) analysis of the 434 proteins indicated that proteins involved in primary biological processes including metabolic processes (67.5%), cellular processes (54.1%), and single-organism processes (43.4%), the main molecular function of almond kernel proteins are in catalytic activity (48.0%), binding (45.4%) and structural molecule activity (11.9%), and proteins are primarily distributed in cell (59.9%), organelle (44.9%), and membrane (22.8%). CONCLUSION: Almond kernel is a source of a wide variety of proteins. This study provides important information contributing to the screening and identification of almond proteins, the understanding of almond protein function, and the development of almond protein products. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry.