Spatially explicit estimation of freshwater fish stock biomass with limited data: A case study of an endangered endemic fish on the Tibetan Plateau, China.

Accurate evaluation of fish stock biomass is essential for effective conservation management and targeted species enhancement efforts. However, this remains challenging owing to limited data availability. Therefore, we present an integrated modeling framework combining catch per unit effort with ensemble species distribution modeling called CPUESDM, which explicitly assesses and validates the spatial distribution of stock biomass for freshwater fish species with limited data, applied to Herzensteinia microcephalus. The core algorithm incorporates the Leslie regression model, ensemble species distribution modeling, and exploratory spatial interpolation techniques. We found that H. microcephalus biomass in the Yangtze River source area yielded an initial estimate of 113.52 tons. Our validation results demonstrate high accuracy with a Cohen's kappa coefficient of 0.78 and root mean square error of 0.05. Furthermore, our spatially-explicit, global, absolute biomass density map effectively identified areas with high and low concentrations of biomass distribution centers. Additionally, this study offers access to the source code, example raw data, and a step-by-step instruction manual for other researchers using field data to explore the application of this model. Our findings can help inform for future conservation efforts around fish stock biomass estimation, especially for endangered species.

Population genomics analysis to identify ion and water transporter genes involved in the adaptation of Tibetan naked carps to brackish water.

Understanding how evolutionary processes shape the genetic variations and influence the response of species to environmental alterations is critical for biodiversity conservation and molecular breeding. Gymnocypris przewalskii przewalskii is the only known cyprinid fish that dwells in the brackish water of Lake Qinghai on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. To reveal the genetic basis of its adaptation to high salinity and alkalinity, whole-genome sequencing was performed in G. p. przewalskii and its freshwater relatives Gymnocypris eckloni and Gymnocypris przewalskii ganzihonensis. Compared with freshwater species, lower genetic diversity and higher linkage disequilibrium were observed in G. p. przewalskii. Selective sweep analysis identified 424 core-selective genes enriched in transport activities. Transfection analysis showed that genetic changes in the positively selected gene aquaporin 3 (AQP3) improved cell viability after salt treatment, suggesting its involvement in brackish water adaptation. Our analysis indicates that ion and water transporter genes experienced intensive selection, which might have contributed to the maintenance of high osmolality and ion content in G. p. przewalskii. The current study identified key molecules involved in the adaptation of fish to brackish water, providing valuable genomic resources for the molecular breeding of salt-tolerant fish.

Osteon-mimetic 3D nanofibrous scaffold enhances stem cell proliferation and osteogenic differentiation for bone regeneration.

The scaffold microstructure is important for bone tissue engineering. Failure to synergistically imitate the hierarchical microstructure of the components of bone, such as an osteon with concentric multilayers assembled by nanofibers, hinders the performance for guiding bone regeneration. Here, a 2D bilayer nanofibrous membrane (BLM) containing poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA)/polycaprolactone (PCL) composite membranes in similar compositions (PCL15 and PCL20), but possessing different degrees of shrinkage, was fabricated via sequential electrospinning. Upon incubation in phosphate buffered saline (PBS) (37 °C), the 2D BLM spontaneously deformed into a 3D shape induced by PCL crystallization within the PLGA matrix, and the PCL15 and PCL20 layer formed a concave and convex surface, respectively. The 3D structure contained curved multilayers with an average diameter of 776 ± 169 µm, and on the concave and convex surface the nanofiber diameters were 792 ± 225 and 881 ± 259 nm, respectively. The initial 2D structure facilitated the even distribution of seeded cells. Adipose-derived stem cells from rats (rADSCs) proliferated faster on a concave surface than on a convex surface. For the 3D BLM, the osteogenic differentiation of rADSCs was significantly higher than that on 2D surfaces, even without osteogenic supplements, which resulted from the stretched cell morphology on the curved sublayer leading to increased expression of lamin-A. After being implanted into cranial defects in Sprague Dawley (SD) rats, 3D BLM significantly accelerated bone formation. In summary, 3D BLM with an osteon-like structure provides a potential strategy to repair bone defects.

[Pharmacological activities of myricetin and its glycosides].

Myricetin and its glycosides are important flavonols commonly found in plants, and they are natural organic compounds with diverse pharmacological activities. Numerous studies have demonstrated that myricetin and its glycosides are strong antioxidants that have great potential in preventing, alleviating and assisting the treatment of chronic non-infectious diseases such as cancer, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases. In addition, myricetin and its glycosides also have antiviral, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, analgesic, liver protection and other pharmacological activities. Myricetin contains more hydroxyl groups in the parent ring structure than other flavonoids, so myricetin and its glycosides have stronger pharmacological activities than other flavonols or flavonoids such as quercetin and kaempferol. Therefore, myricetin and its glycosides have great development and application prospects. In this paper, the classification and distribution of myricetin and its glycosides, their pharmacological activity and mechanism, as well as comparison with other flavonoids were reviewed. In addition, limitations of the current research and application of myricetin and its glycosides were analyzed, and the further studies on pharmacological activities as well as their dose-activity relationship, structure-activity relationship, chemical modification, biosynthesis and application prospects of myricetin and its glycosides were discussed and proposed.

LC-Q-TOF-MS Characterization of Polyphenols from White Bayberry Fruit and Its Antidiabetic Effect in KK-Ay Mice.

The present study is to investigate the polyphenolic composition and in vivo antidiabetic effect of white-fleshed Chinese bayberry cultivar "Shui Jing". By liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LC-Q-TOF-MS), 38 polyphenols were identified in the Shui Jing fruit extract (SJE), where proanthocyanidins (PAs), including epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), as well as flavonols, including myricitrin and quercetrin, were the predominant ingredients. After a 5-week experiment, the SJE (200 mg/kg bodyweight) significantly reduced fasting blood glucose, elevated glucose tolerance, and insulin sensitivity in diabetic KK-Ay mice. It markedly attenuated bodyweight gain and decreased glycolipid metabolism-related markers including insulin, leptin, glucagon, triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels in mice. Liver weight and hepatic lipid accumulation were also significantly reduced by the SJE. Gene expressions of insulin 1 (INS1) and glycogen synthase kinase 3 ß (GSK3b) were markedly inhibited while the hepatic phosphorylation of AMPKα was significantly increased in the liver of SJE-treated mice, indicating that the SJE may exert an antidiabetic effect through an AMPK-dependent pathway. In conclusion, white bayberry rich in PAs and flavonols may have great potential in the regulation of diabetes mellitus.

α-Glucosidase inhibitors from Chinese bayberry (Morella rubra Sieb. et Zucc.) fruit: molecular docking and interaction mechanism of flavonols with different B-ring hydroxylations.

Inhibition of α-glucosidase alleviates postprandial high glycemic levels in diabetic or prediabetic population. In Chinese bayberry fruit, myricetin, quercetin and kaempferol are main flavonols, which differ only in their hydroxylation on the B-ring. Kaempferol (4'-OH) showed high IC50 (65.36 ± 0.27 µmol L-1) against α-glucosidase, while quercetin (3',4'-OH) exhibited stronger inhibition (46.91 ± 0.54 µmol L-1) and myricetin (3',4',5'-OH) possessed the strongest inhibitory activity (33.20 ± 0.43 µmol L-1). Molecular docking analysis illustrated that these flavonols could insert to the active cavity of α-glucosidase. Adjacent hydroxyl groups at B-ring of myricetin and quercetin positively contributed to form hydrogen bonds that were important to the stability of flavonol-enzyme complex, while kaempferol had no adjacent hydroxyl groups. Such observation was further validated by molecular dynamics simulations, and in good consistency with in vitro kinetic analysis and fluorescence spectroscopy analysis. Among three flavonols tested, myricetin possessed the strongest inhibition effects on α-glucosidase with the lowest dissociation constant (K i = 15.56 µmol L-1) of myricetin-α-glucosidase, largest fluorescence quenching constant (K sv) of (14.26 ± 0.03) × 104 L mol-1 and highest binding constant (K a) of (1.38 ± 0.03) × 105 L mol-1 at 298 K with the enzyme. Bio-Layer Interferometry (BLI) and circular dichroism (CD) analysis further confirmed that myricetin had high affinity to α-glucosidase and induced conformational changes of enzyme. Therefore, myricetin, quercetin and kaempferol are all excellent dietary α-glucosidase inhibitors and their inhibitory activities are enhanced by increasing number of hydroxyl groups on B-ring.