Hydroxytyrosol Alleviates Intestinal Oxidative Stress by Regulating Bile Acid Metabolism in a Piglet Model.

Infants and young animals often suffer from intestinal damage caused by oxidative stress, which may adversely affect their overall health. Hydroxytyrosol, a plant polyphenol, has shown potential in decreasing intestinal oxidative stress, but its application and mechanism of action in infants and young animals are still inadequately documented. This study selected piglets as a model to investigate the alleviating effects of hydroxytyrosol on intestinal oxidative stress induced by diquat and its potential mechanism. Hydroxytyrosol improved intestinal morphology, characterized by higher villus height and villus height/crypt depth. Meanwhile, hydroxytyrosol led to higher expression of Occludin, MUC2, Nrf2, and its downstream genes, and lower expression of cytokines IL-1ß, IL-6, and TNF-α. Both oxidative stress and hydroxytyrosol resulted in a higher abundance of Clostridium_sensu_stricto_1, and a lower abundance of Lactobacillus and Streptococcus, without a significant effect on short-chain fatty acids levels. Oxidative stress also led to disorders in bile acid (BA) metabolism, such as the lower levels of primary BAs, hyocholic acid, hyodeoxycholic acid, and tauroursodeoxycholic acid, which were partially restored by hydroxytyrosol. Correlation analysis revealed a positive correlation between these BA levels and the expression of Nrf2 and its downstream genes. Collectively, hydroxytyrosol may reduce oxidative stress-induced intestinal damage by regulating BA metabolism.

Quantitative evaluation on thermal seeing induced 2m ring solar telescope.

Thermal seeing is one of the factors that affect solar telescope observations. A comprehensive analysis method is developed to quantify the thermal seeing effects. A three-dimensional Large Eddy Simulation (LES) turbulence model is used to obtain the transient flow fields around the primary mirror, the secondary mirror and the heat-stop. The thermal seeing is calculated based on the stochastic dynamic influence of turbulence on the light rays. The key parameters of the simulation were calibrated by experiments, and the simulation results were validated by empirical formulas. This method has been applied to evaluate the thermal seeing of the 2m Ring Solar Telescope (2m-RST). Error allocation is performed based on the research results to ensure the Observation effect of 2m-RST.

Dual-beam polarimeter based on nonachromatic wave plates with high polarimetric efficiency over a broad band.

The design and test of a dual-beam polarimeter to be applied to the Fiber Array Solar Optical Telescope of the second generation is described. The polarimeter consists of a half and a quarter nonachromatic wave plate, followed by a polarizing beam splitter as a polarization analyzer. It has the features of simple structure, stable operation, and temperature insensitivity. The most outstanding feature of the polarimeter is that a combination of commercial nonachromatic wave plates is used as a modulator to have the high polarimetric efficiency of the Stokes polarization parameters over 500-900 nm; the efficiency balance among the linear and circular polarization parameters is also taken into account. In order to see the stability and reliability of this polarimeter, we perform the actual measurement of the polarimetric efficiencies of the assembling polarimeter in the laboratory. It is found that the lowest linear polarimetric efficiency is over 0.46, the lowest circular polarimetric efficiency is above 0.47, and the total polarimetric efficiency is greater than 0.93 over 500-900 nm. The measured results are basically consistent with the theoretical design. Thus, the polarimeter guarantees observers to choose freely spectral lines, formed in different layers of the solar atmosphere. It can be concluded that such a dual-beam polarimeter based on nonachromatic wave plates has excellent performance and can be extensively applied in astronomical measurement.

Butyric and Citric Acids and Their Salts in Poultry Nutrition: Effects on Gut Health and Intestinal Microbiota.

Intestinal dysfunction of farm animals, such as intestinal inflammation and altered gut microbiota, is the critical problem affecting animal welfare, performance and farm profitability. China has prohibited the use of antibiotics to improve feed efficiency and growth performance for farm animals, including poultry, in 2020. With the advantages of maintaining gut homeostasis, enhancing digestion, and absorption and modulating gut microbiota, organic acids are regarded as promising antibiotic alternatives. Butyric and citric acids as presentative organic acids positively impact growth performance, welfare, and intestinal health of livestock mainly by reducing pathogenic bacteria and maintaining the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) pH. This review summarizes the discovery of butyric acid (BA), citric acid (CA) and their salt forms, molecular structure and properties, metabolism, biological functions and their applications in poultry nutrition. The research findings about BA, CA and their salts on rats, pigs and humans are also briefly reviewed. Therefore, this review will fill the knowledge gaps of the scientific community and may be of great interest for poultry nutritionists, researchers and feed manufacturers about these two weak organic acids and their effects on intestinal health and gut microbiota community, with the hope of providing safe, healthy and nutrient-rich poultry products to consumers.

In situ Observation of Compression Damage in a Three-Dimensional Braided Carbon Fiber Reinforced Carbon and Silicon Carbide (C/C-SiC) Ceramic Composite.

Deformation and mechanical damage in a three-dimensional braided carbon fiber reinforced carbon and silicon carbide ceramic composite, subjected to compressive loading, has been studied in situ by laboratory X-ray computed tomography. Dimensional change was measured and damage visualized by digital volume correlation analysis of tomographs. Cracks nucleated from defects within the fiber bundles and tended to propagate along the fiber bundle/matrix interface. For longitudinal compression, parallel to the fiber bundles, the initial elastic modulus decreased with increasing compressive strain while significant transverse tensile strains developed due to distributed cracking. For transverse compression, perpendicular to the fiber bundles, the compressive elastic modulus was effectively constant; the tensile strains developed along the fiber direction were small, whereas macroscopic fracture between the fiber bundles caused very large bulk tensile strain perpendicular to the loading. The observations suggest that the mechanical strength might be improved through control of pre-existing defects and application of stitch fibers in the transverse direction.

Cordyceps militaris Extract and Cordycepin Alleviate Oxidative Stress, Modulate Gut Microbiota and Ameliorate Intestinal Damage in LPS-Induced Piglets.

Cordycepin is considered a major bioactive component in Cordyceps militaris extract. This study was performed to evaluate the ameliorative effect of Cordyceps militaris extract (CME) and cordycepin (CPN) supplementation on intestinal damage in LPS-challenged piglets. The results showed that CPN or CME supplementation significantly increased the villus height (p < 0.01) and villus height/crypt depth ratio (p < 0.05) in the jejunum and ileum of piglets with LPS-induced intestinal inflammation. Meanwhile, CPN or CME supplementation alleviated oxidative stress and inflammatory responses by reducing the levels of MDA (p < 0.05) and pro-inflammatory cytokines in the serum. Additionally, supplementation with CPN or CME modulated the structure of the intestinal microbiota by enriching short-chain fatty acid-producing bacteria, and increased the level of butyrate (p < 0.05). The RNA-seq results demonstrated that CME or CPN altered the complement and coagulation-cascade-related genes (p < 0.05), including upregulating gene KLKB1 while downregulating the genes CFD, F2RL2, CFB, C4BPA, F7, C4BPB, CFH, C3 and PROS1, which regulate the complement activation involved in inflammatory and immune responses. Correlation analysis further demonstrated the potential relation between the gut microbiota and intestinal inflammation, oxidative stress, and butyrate in piglets. In conclusion, CPN or CME supplementation might inhibit LPS-induced inflammation and oxidative stress by modulating the intestinal microbiota and its metabolite butyrate in piglets.

Caffeic acid supplementation ameliorates intestinal injury by modulating intestinal microbiota in LPS-challenged piglets.

During weaning, piglets are susceptible to intestinal injuries caused by a range of infections, which result in serious economic losses for pig producers. Caffeic acid (CA) is a plant-derived phenolic acid that exhibits potential as a dietary supplement for enhancing intestinal health. There is, however, limited information available about the potential benefits of CA supplementation on intestinal injury and growth performance in piglets. A 28-day study was conducted to examine the effectiveness of CA supplementation in protecting against intestinal injury induced by intraperitoneal injection of Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in piglets. Twenty-four piglets (7.43 ± 0.79 kg body weight; Duroc × Landrace × Large White; barrows) were randomly divided into 4 groups: the control group, the LPS group, the LPS + CA group, and the CA group. Piglets were administered with LPS or saline on d21 and d28 of the experiment. Supplementation with CA improved intestinal barrier function in LPS-challenged piglets by enhancing intestinal morphology and integrity, as well as increasing the expression of Claudin-1 and ZO-1. Meanwhile, CA supplementation improved the systemic and colonic inflammation responses, oxidative stress, and apoptosis induced by LPS. CA supplementation improved the alpha diversity and structure of the intestinal microbiota by increasing the abundance of beneficial microbiota. Additionally, it was found that it improves metabolic disorders of colonic bile acids (BAs) and short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) in LPS-challenged piglets, including an increase in primary BAs and isovalerate. In conclusion, CA supplementation could enhance intestinal integrity and barrier function by modifying intestinal microbiota and its metabolites, which could lead to a reduction in inflammatory responses and oxidative stress and ultimately enhanced growth performance in piglets.

Encapsulating therapeutic cells in RGD-modified agarose microcapsules.

Current cell-based strategies for repairing damaged tissue often show limited efficacy due to low cell retention at the site of injury. Encapsulation of cells within hydrogel microcapsules demonstrably increases cell retention but benefits can be limited due to premature cell escape from the hydrogel microcapsules and subsequent clearance from the targeted tissue. We propose a method of encapsulating cells in agarose microcapsules that have been modified to increase cell retention by providing cell attachment domains within the agarose hydrogel allowing cells to adhere to the microcapsules. We covalently modified agarose with the addition of the cell adhesion peptide, RGD (arginine, glycine, aspartic acid). We then used a microfluidic platform to encapsulate single cells within 50 µm agarose microcapsules. We tracked encapsulated cells for cell viability, egress from microcapsules and attachment to microcapsules at 2 h, 24 h, and 48 h after encapsulation. Many encapsulated cells eventually egress their microcapsule. Those that were encapsulated using RGD-modified agarose adhered to the outer surface of the microcapsule following egress. NIH 3T3 cells showed nearly 45% of egressed cells attached to the outside of RGD modified agarose microcapsules, while minimal cellular adhesion was observed when using unmodified agarose. Similarly, human umbilical vein endothelial cells had up to 33% of egressed cells attached and explant-derived cardiac cells showed up to 20% attachment with the presence of RGD binding domains within the agarose microcapsules.

3 D†MOFs containing trigonal bipyramidal Ln5 †clusters as nodes: large magnetocaloric effect and slow magnetic relaxation behavior.

Two 3D heterometal-organic frameworks based on infrequent trigonal bipyramidal Ln(5)  clusters as nodes were structurally and magnetically characterized (Ln=Gd (1), Dy (2)). The results indicate large MCE of up to 30.7 J kg(-1)  K(-1) in 1 and slow magnetic relaxation behavior in 2. Expectedly, constructing 3D MOFs based on multinuclear clusters as nodes may will be a new strategy for achieving large -ΔS(m). Additionally, compound 1 exhibits high thermal and solvent stabilities, providing a favorable foundation for realistic applications.

Dihydroquercetin Supplementation Improved Hepatic Lipid Dysmetabolism Mediated by Gut Microbiota in High-Fat Diet (HFD)-Fed Mice.

Dihydroquercetin (DHQ) is a natural flavonoid with multiple bioactivities, including hepatoprotective effects. This study aimed to investigate whether DHQ improved lipid dysmetabolism in the body, especially in the liver, and whether there is a relationship between hepatic metabolism and altered gut flora in high-fat diet (HFD)-induced mice. HFD-induced mice were given 50 mg/kg body weight DHQ intragastrically for 10 weeks. The data showed that DHQ reduced body weight, the weight of the liver and white adipose tissue as well as serum leptin, LPS, triglyceride and cholesterol levels. RNA-seq results indicated that DHQ down-regulated lipogenesis-related genes and up-regulated fatty acid oxidation-related genes, including MOGAT1 and CPT1A. Furthermore, DHQ had a tendency to decrease hepatic cholesterol contents by reducing the mRNA levels of cholesterol synthesis genes such as FDPS and HMGCS1. 16S rRNA sequencing analysis indicated that DHQ significantly decreased the richness of Lactococcus, Lachnoclostridium, and Eubacterium_xylanophilum_group. Correlation analysis further demonstrated that these bacteria, Lactococcus and Eubacterium_xylanophilum_group in particular, had significantly positive correlation with lipid and cholesterol synthesis genes, and negative correlation with fatty acid oxidation genes. In conclusion, DHQ could improve hepatic lipid dysmetabolism potentially by improved gut microbial community, which may be used as an intervention strategy in hepatic metabolism diseases.

The Kinematics and Dynamics of Schizopygopsis malacanthus Swimming during Ucrit Testing.

The swimming kinematics (how fish move) and dynamics (how forces effect movement) of Schizopygopsis malacanthus were investigated during the determination of Ucrit by stepped velocity testing. A video tracking program was used to record and analyze the motion of five test fish in a Brett-type flume during each velocity step. The findings fell into three groups: (1) Even when flow was uniform, fish did not swim steadily, with speeds fluctuating by 2.2% to 8.4% during steady swimming. The proportion of unsteady swimming time increased with water velocity, and defining steady and unsteady swimming statistically, in terms of the definition of standard deviation of instantaneous displacements, may have higher accuracy. (2) In steady swimming, the forward velocity and acceleration of fish were correlated with body length (p < 0.05), but in unsteady swimming the correlations were not significant. The maximum swimming speed (1.504 m/s) and acceleration (16.54 m/s2) occurred during unsteady swimming, but these measurements may not be definitive because of tank space constraints on fish movement and the passive behavior of the test fish with respect to acceleration. (3) Burst-coast swimming in still water, investigated by previous scholars as an energy conserving behavior, is not the same as the gait transition from steady to unsteady swimming in flowing water. In this study, the axial force of fish swimming in the unsteady mode was significantly higher (×1.2~1.6) than in the steady mode, as was the energy consumed (×1.27~3.33). Thus, gait transition increases, rather than decreases, energy consumption. Our characterization of the kinematics and dynamics of fish swimming provides important new information to consider when indices of swimming ability from controlled tank testing are applied to fish passage design.

Enhancing biological nitrogen removal for a retrofit project using wastewater with a low C/N ratio-a model-based study.

Anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox) has the merit of saving the carbon source and aeration energy for nitrogen (N) removal, but it is normally a challenge to achieve mainstream anammox. In this study, the potential to enhance the N-removal capability of an existing University of Cape Town membrane bioreactor system (UCT-MBR) system is evaluated through process modeling. In addition to external carbon addition, the UCT-MBR system is proposed to be converted into an anoxic-oxic (AO) configuration with two operation plans: one is single-sludge (suspended sludge) and the other is double-sludge (suspended sludge and biofilm). The choice between pushing anammox and enhancing conventional heterotrophic denitrification is assessed. The simulation result indicates it is feasible to strategically adjust the spatial-temporal balance between electron donors and electron acceptors to achieve enhanced N-removal by utilizing the influent organic carbon other than adding external carbon. Although anammox can be promoted in the double-sludge-based AO under low-DO conditions, pushing anammox will weaken the system's resilience to influent fluctuations and carries no economic advantage over the single-sludge-based AO. Overall, this study concurs with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal that the wastewater industry should seek more energy-efficient measures for wastewater treatment.

Enhanced Collagen-like Protein for Facile Biomaterial Fabrication.

We present a collagen-mimetic protein of bacterial origin based upon a modified subdomain of the collagen-like Sc12 protein from Streptococcus pyogenes, as an alternative collagen-like biomaterial platform that is highly soluble, forms stable, homogeneous, fluid-like solutions at elevated concentrations, and that can be efficiently fabricated into hydrogel materials over a broad range of pH conditions. This extended bacterial collagen-like (eBCL) protein is expressed in a bacterial host and purified as a trimeric assembly exhibiting a triple helical secondary structure in its collagen-like subdomain that is stable near physiological solution conditions (neutral pH and 37 °C), as well as over a broad range of pH conditions. We also show how this sequence can be modified to include biofunctional attributes, in particular, the Arg-Gly-Asp (RGD) sequence to elicit integrin-specific cell binding, without loss of structural function. Furthermore, through the use of EDC-NHS chemistry, we demonstrate that members of this eBCL protein system can be covalently cross-linked to fabricate transparent hydrogels with high protein concentrations (at least to 20% w/w). These hydrogels are shown to possess material properties and resistance to enzymatic degradation that are comparable or superior to a type I collagen control. Moreover, such hydrogels containing the constructs with the RGD integrin-binding sequence are shown to promote the adhesion, spreading, and proliferation of C2C12 and 3T3 cells in vitro. Due to its enhanced solubility, structural stability, fluidity at elevated concentrations, ease of modification, and facility of cross-linking, this eBCL collagen-mimetic system has potential for numerous biomedical material applications, where the ease of processing and fabrication and the facility to tailor the sequence for specific biological functionality are desired.

Caffeic Acid Supplement Alleviates Colonic Inflammation and Oxidative Stress Potentially Through Improved Gut Microbiota Community in Mice.

Caffeic acid (CA) is one of the major phenolic acids of coffee with multiple biological activities. Our previous study found that 500 mg/kg of chlorogenic acid (CGA) had the potential capacity of alleviating colonic inflammation. Moreover, CGA can be degraded into caffeic acid (CA) by the gut microbiota in the colon. Therefore, we hypothesize that CA can exert protective effects on colonic inflammation. To test the hypothesis, 251 mg/kg CA was supplemented to DSS-induced colitis mice. The results showed that CA treatment recovered DSS-induced disease activity index (DAI), colon length, and histopathology scores of colon tissue. Additionally, CA treatment significantly decreased pro-inflammatory cytokines and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels and increased the level of IL-10, total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC), superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), and catalase (CAT) in serum. qPCR results indicated that CA treatment dramatically downregulated mRNA expression of IL-1ß, IL-6, and TNF-α as well as upregulated SOD1, GPX1, GPX2, CAT, and IL-10. In addition, CA supplementation significantly increased mRNA expression of Nrf-2, HO-1, and NQO1, which showed its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory capacities potentially by activating the Nrf-2/HO-1 pathway. Moreover, CA supplementation prevented gut barrier damage by enhancing Occludin gene expression. Furthermore, CA supplementation altered the gut microbiome composition by decreasing the relative abundance of Bacteroides and Turicibacter, and enhancing the relative abundance of Alistipes and Dubosiella. Meanwhile, CA supplementation increases the abundance of Dubosiella and Akkermansia. In conclusion, CA supplementation could effectively alleviate DSS-induced colitis by improving the defense against oxidative stress and inflammatory response.

Dihydroquercetin supplement alleviates colonic inflammation potentially through improved gut microbiota community in mice.

The purpose of the current study was to investigate the effect of dietary dihydroquercetin (DHQ) supplementation on dextran sodium sulfate (DSS)-induced colitis in mice. Mice were given DHQ supplementation (3 g kg-1) throughout the study, starting 14 days prior to DSS treatment for 1 week followed by 2 days without DSS. The results showed that dietary DHQ supplementation restored DSS-induced disease activity index (DAI), colon length and histopathology scores of the colon tissue. Additionally, supplementation with DHQ reduced the pro-inflammatory cytokine levels, and enhanced the level of IL-10 in the serum. qPCR results indicated that DHQ supplementation significantly downregulated IL-1ß, IL-6, and TNF-α, and upregulated IL-10 gene mRNA expression. Western blot results proved that DHQ supplementation upregulated ZO-1 and occludin levels. Using amplicon sequencing technology, 16S rRNA sequencing results showed that DHQ supplementation increased the fecal Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes ratio and the relative abundance of Lactobacillus and Dubosiella, and decreased the relative abundance of Bacteroidetes. Additionally, DHQ supplementation restored the decreased fecal acetic acid and butyric acid concentrations in DSS-induced colitis mice. Besides, Spearman's correlation analysis showed that Dubosiella was positively correlated with the butyric acid level and Bacteroidetes was positively correlated with the mRNA expression of IL-1ß and IL-6. Both Lactobacillus and Dubosiella showed a negative correlation with the mRNA expression of IL-1ß, IL-6, and TNF-α, and Dubosiella was positively correlated with IL-10. In summary, it was found that DHQ supplementation alleviated DSS-induced colitis which may be potentially associated with altered fecal microbiota communities in mice.

Supplementation With Chinese Medicinal Plant Extracts From Lonicera hypoglauca and Scutellaria baicalensis Mitigates Colonic Inflammation by Regulating Oxidative Stress and Gut Microbiota in a Colitis Mouse Model.

Colitis, a chronic inflammatory bowel disease, is characterized by bloody diarrhea and inflammation in the colon. Lonicera hypoglauca ("Shanyinhua" in Chinese) and Scutellaria baicalensis ("Huangqin" in Chinese) are two traditional Chinese medicinal plants rich in polyphenols, such as chlorogenic acid (CGA) and baicalin (BA), with the effects of anti-inflammation and antioxidation. However, it remains unknown whether extracts from L. hypoglauca and S. baicalensis (LSEs) could mitigate colonic inflammation. In the present study, ICR mice (22.23 ± 1.65 g) were allocated to three groups treated with chow diet without (CON) or with dextran sulfate sodium (DSS) (CON+DSS) in water or LSE supplementation in diet with DSS (LSE+DSS), and then inflammatory and oxidative parameters and colonic microbiota were detected. The results showed that LSE (500 mg/kg) treatment mitigated DSS-induced colitis symptoms and restored the shortened colon length, the increased disease activity index (DAI), and the damaged intestinal barrier. In serum, LSE supplementation significantly decreased levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines including interleukin (IL)-1ß, IL-6, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and increased IL-10 level. Meanwhile, superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) were increased, and malondialdehyde (MDA) and reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels were decreased. In the colon tissue, qPCR results showed that LSE supplementation dramatically downregulated the transcriptional expression of IL-1ß, IL-6, TNF-α, and MDA and upregulated the expression of SOD1, CAT, and IL-10. Additionally, the damaged gut barriers occludin and zonula occludens-1 (ZO-1) in the CON+DSS group were enhanced with LSE supplementation. Furthermore, LSE treatment regulated the gut microbial communities with higher relative abundance of Dubosiella and Ruminococcus torques group and lower relative abundance of Bacteroides and Turicibacter. Moreover, the contents of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) as products of gut microbiota were also increased. Correlation analysis showed that the mRNA expression of SOD1 was negatively correlated with TNF-α (r = -0.900, P < 0.05); the mRNA expression of IL-6 (r = -0.779, P < 0.05) and TNF-α (r = -0.703, P < 0.05) had a dramatically negative correlation with Dubosiella. In conclusion, LSE supplementation could effectively ameliorate inflammation by modulating oxidative stress and gut microbiota in a colitis mouse model.

Olive Fruit Extracts Supplement Improve Antioxidant Capacity via Altering Colonic Microbiota Composition in Mice.

Oxidative stress, one of the most common biological dysfunctions, is usually associated with pathological conditions and multiple diseases in humans and animals. Chinese olive fruit (Canarium album L.) extracts (OE) are natural plant extracts rich in polyphenols (such as hydroxytyrosol, HT) and with antioxidant, anti-hyperlipidemia, and anti-inflammatory potentials. This study was conducted to investigate the antioxidant capacity of OE supplementation and its related molecular mechanism in mice. Mice (25.46 ± 1.65 g) were treated with 100 mg/kg body weight (BW) OE or saline solution for 4 weeks, and then the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory capacities of mice were examined. The results showed that OE supplement significantly increased the serum antioxidative enzyme activities of total antioxidant activity (T-AOC), superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), and catalase and decreased the serum malondialdehyde (MDA) level, indicating that OE treatment enhanced the antioxidant capacity in mice. qPCR results showed that the transcriptional expression of antioxidant SOD1, CAT, Gpx1, and Gpx2 were significantly down-regulated in the small intestine (jejunum and ileum) after OE administration. Meanwhile, OE treatment significantly decreased the T-AOC and increased the MDA level in the small intestine. Furthermore, OE administration dramatically reduced the mRNA expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α and IL-1ß), which confirmed its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory capacities with OE administration. Using amplicon sequencing technology, 16S rRNA sequencing results showed that OE supplement significantly increased the colonic Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes ratio, which also had a negative correlation with the serum MDA level and positively correlated with serum GSH-Px activity through Pearson correlation analysis. Besides that, Alloprevotella was negatively correlated with serum T-AOC. Colidextribacter was positively correlated with serum MDA and negatively correlated with serum T-AOC, SOD, and GSH-Px levels. In summary, this study showed that treatment with 100 mg/kg BW polyphenol-rich OE could alter colonic microbiota community, which was strongly associated with improved antioxidant capacity in mice.

Theoretical and experimental investigation of Xenotime-type rare earth phosphate REPO4, (RE = Lu, Yb, Er, Y and Sc) for potential environmental barrier coating applications.

The mechanical and thermophysical properties of Xenotime-type REPO4 (RE = Lu, Yb, Er, Y and Sc) have been theoretically and experimentally investigated for a potential environmental barrier coating (EBC) topcoat application. The results show that the current studied REPO4 exhibits a quasi-ductile property, suggesting a potential long life expectancy of its made coatings. Further, from the study of underlying parameters governing thermophysical properties of a ceramic, low thermal expansion coefficients (TECs) and low thermal conductivities cannot be achieved simultaneously, due to mutual exclusive nature of above two parameters. REPO4 has been unveiled to have rather small TECs, attributing partly to its weak lattice anharmonicity, and is thus well-matched with silicon carbide based ceramic matrix composites. Last, the current investigated REPO4 exhibits very good high-temperature water vapor corrosion resistance, excellent calcium-magnesium aluminosilicates (CMAS) resistance as well as excellent chemical compatibility with silicon bond coats at elevated temperatures. Therefore, the Xenotime-type rare earth phosphates are a promising EBC topcoat material.