Fungal microbiome related to mycotoxin contamination in medicinal and edible seed Semen Persicae.

Medicinal and edible seed Semen Persicae is susceptible to mycotoxin and fungal contamination. However, the occurrence of mycotoxin contamination and fungal infection is still unclear. In this paper, ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-tandem triple quadrupole mass spectrometry and high-throughput sequencing were conducted to determine the mycotoxin contents and fungal abundances of Semen Persicae. 42.86% of samples were positive for aflatoxin B1 (26.48-48.37 µg/kg) and 28.57% of samples were positive for aflatoxin B2 (1.47-4.82 µg/kg). Ochratoxin A and fumonisin B1 were only detected in one sample (91.02 and 34.61 µg/kg, respectively). Chao 1 and Shannon indices were significantly higher in the Dalian of Liaoning, Baotou of Innermongolia and Langfang of Hebei regions than in other groups. Ascomycota, Basidiomycota, Wallemia, Candica, Saccharomyces and Aspergillus were the predominant fungi and they were significantly region-specific. Simultaneously, the diversity, composition and co-occurrence network complexity in the mycotoxin-free group were significantly higher than those in the mycotoxin-contaminated group. Spearman correlation analysis showed aflatoxins, ochratoxin A and fumonisins contents were positively and significantly correlated with the abundances of Aspergillus, Rhodotorula, Wallemia and Candida. In conclusion, this study reported the prevalence of mycotoxin contamination and the great diversity of fungi associated with Semen Persicae for the first time, providing an early warning for subsequent potential mycotoxin biosynthesis.

Identification of histone acetyltransferase genes responsible for cannabinoid synthesis in hemp.

BACKGROUND: Histone acetyltransferases (HATs) play an important role in plant growth and development, stress response, and regulation of secondary metabolite biosynthesis. Hemp (Cannabis sativa L.) is famous for its high industrial, nutritional, and medicinal value. It contains non-psychoactive cannabinoid cannabidiol (CBD) and cannabinol (CBG), which play important roles as anti-inflammatory and anti-anxiety. At present, the involvement of HATs in the regulation of cannabinoid CBD and CBG synthesis has not been clarified. METHODS: The members of HAT genes family in hemp were systematically analyzed by bioinformatics analysis. In addition, the expression level of HATs and the level of histone acetylation modification were analyzed based on transcriptome data and protein modification data. Real-time quantitative PCR was used to verify the changes in gene expression levels after inhibitor treatment. The changes of CBD and CBG contents after inhibitor treatment were verified by HPLC-MS analysis. RESULTS: Here, 11 HAT genes were identified in the hemp genome. Phylogenetic analysis showed that hemp HAT family genes can be divided into six groups. Cannabinoid synthesis genes exhibited spatiotemporal specificity, and histones were acetylated in different inflorescence developmental stages. The expression of cannabinoid synthesis genes was inhibited and the content of CBD and CBG declined by 10% to 55% in the samples treated by HAT inhibitor (PU139). Results indicated that CsHAT genes may regulate cannabinoid synthesis through altering histone acetylation. CONCLUSIONS: Our study provides genetic information of HATs responsible for cannabinoid synthesis, and offers a new approach for increasing the content of cannabinoid in hemp.

The Yin and Yang of traditional Chinese and Western medicine.

The success of Western Scientific approaches to medicine, over the last 150 years, can be measured by substantial increases in life expectancy, reductions in infant mortality and the virtual elimination of many infectious diseases accompanied by development of effective management practices for noncommunicable diseases. However, major challenges remain in the form of infectious diseases that evolve resistance to pharmaceuticals rapidly, new diseases, particularly those caused by viruses and effective long-term treatments for chronic, noncommunicable diseases. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) can offer complementary treatments based on personalised interventions, informed by knowledge accumulated from empirical observations gathered over centuries of practice, that address the impact of disease on the whole body. We provide examples of both infectious and noncommunicable diseases where the combination of Western Scientific Medicine (WSM) and TCM can benefit patients in terms of the speed and efficacy of recovery or disease management. TCM is a healing skill based on practice, while WSM is scientific, based on experiments. Against this background, an understanding of the mechanisms of action of traditional Chinese medicinal preparations will offer fresh routes to discovery and development of new therapeutics as well as patented medical prescriptions, which will rely heavily on modern scientific methodologies for their adoption and success, particularly those in plant genomics, plant breeding and synthetic biology.

[Establish quality evaluation method based on standard decoction of Danshen extract].

The quality of Danshen extract granules on market is largely different from each other mainly due to the heterogeneous quality of raw materials of Salvia miltiorrhiza, various producing procedures and lack of good quality evaluation method. Formula granule and "standard decoction" have the same quality. In this paper, a systematic evaluation method for the quality of Danshen decoction was established from the perspective of "standard decoction", in order to explore the main factors affecting the quality uniformity of Danshen extract granules. Danshen standard decoction was prepared; then the fingerprint method was developed to determine the content of salvianolic acid B; and the main peaks in the fingerprint were identified with UPLC-QTOF/MS to clarify the chemical compositions of Danshen decoction. Three indexes were calculated to evaluate the stability of whole process, including the extraction ratio; transfer rate of index components and pH value. The results showed that the main components of Danshen decoction were phenolic acids, while the extraction rate, the transfer rate of salvianolic acid B and pH value were in a relatively stable level, and the similarity in the fingerprint of standard decoction was high, indicating that the preparation procedure was stable. The level of salvianolic acid B in the standard decoction was in a large range, which was mainly due to the difference in the quality of Salviae Miltiorrhizae Radix et Rhizoma.

Inhibition of breast cancer metastasis by paclitaxel-loaded pH responsive poly(ß-amino ester) copolymer micelles.

AIM: Tumor metastasis is one of the leading causes of insufficient chemotherapy during cancer treatment. In this study, a poly(ß-amino ester) derivate was developed to fabricate paclitaxel (PTX) entrapped pH-responsive copolymer micelles for inhibition of breast cancer metastasis. MATERIALS & METHODS: PTX-loaded micelles were fabricated by thin film hydration method. The inhibition efficacy of the as-prepared micelles was evaluated on MDA-MB-231 cells and tumor bearing mice. RESULTS: PTX-loaded micelles were successfully prepared. Such micelles could promote drug uptake and MDA-MB-231 cell deaths, and suppress tumor metastasis. CONCLUSION: The pH-responsive PTX-loaded micelles are promising candidates in developing stimuli triggered drug delivery systems in acidic tumor microenvironments with improved inhibitory effects on tumor metastasis.

Proteomic Dissection of Endosperm Starch Granule Associated Proteins Reveals a Network Coordinating Starch Biosynthesis and Amino Acid Metabolism and Glycolysis in Rice Endosperms.

Starch biosynthesis and starch granule packaging in cereal endosperms involve a coordinated action of starch biosynthesis enzymes and coordination with other metabolisms. Because directly binding to starch granules, starch granule-associated proteins (SGAPs) are essential to understand the underlying mechanisms, however the information on SGAPs remains largely unknown. Here, we dissected developmentally changed SGAPs from developing rice endosperms from 10 to 20 days after flowering (DAF). Starch granule packaging was not completed at 10 DAF, and was finished in the central endosperm at 15 DAF and in the whole endosperm at 20 DAF. Proteomic analysis with two-dimensional differential in-gel electrophoresis and mass spectrometry revealed 115 developmentally changed SGAPs, representing 37 unique proteins. 65% of the unique proteins had isoforms. 39% of the identified SGAPs were involved in starch biosynthesis with main functions in polyglucan elongation and granule structure trimming. Almost all proteins involved in starch biosynthesis, amino acid biosynthesis, glycolysis, protein folding, and PPDK pathways increased abundance as the endosperm developed, and were predicted in an interaction network. The network represents an important mechanism to orchestrate carbon partitioning among starch biosynthesis, amino acid biosynthesis and glycolysis for efficient starch and protein storage. These results provide novel insights into mechanisms of starch biosynthesis and its coordination with amino acid metabolisms and glycolysis in cereal endosperms.