An endophytic fungus Schizophyllum commune isolated from Panax ginseng enhances hairy roots growth and ginsenoside biosynthesis.

Using endophytic fungal elicitors to increase the accumulation of valuable secondary metabolites in plant tissue culture is an effective biotechnology strategy. In this study, a collection of 56 strains of endophytic fungi were isolated from different organs of cultivated Panax ginseng, of which seven strains can be symbiotically co-cultured with the hairy roots of P. ginseng. Further experiments observed that strain 3R-2, identified as endophytic fungus Schizophyllum commune, can not only infect hairy roots but also promote the accumulation of specific ginsenosides. This was further verified because S. commune colonization significantly affected the overall metabolic profile of ginseng hairy roots. By comparing the effects of S. commune mycelia and its mycelia extract (EM) on ginsenoside production in P. ginseng hairy roots, the EM was confirmed to be a relatively better stimulus elicitor. Additionally, the introduction of EM elicitor can significantly enhance the expressions of key enzyme genes of pgHMGR, pgSS, pgSE, and pgSD involved in the biosynthetic pathway of ginsenosides, which was deemed the most relevant factor for promoting ginsenosides production during the elicitation period. In conclusion, this study is the first to show that the EM of endophytic fungus S. commune can be considered as an effective endophytic fungal elicitor for increasing the biosynthesis of ginsenosides in hairy root cultures of P. ginseng.

Mechanisms of Epichloë bromicola to Promote Plant Growth and Its Potential Application for Coix lacryma-jobi L. Cultivation.

Endophytic fungi play important roles in regulating plant growth and development and usually used as a promising strategy to enhance the biosynthesis of host valuable secondary metabolite, but the underlying growth-promoting mechanisms are only partly understood. In this study, the wild-type Arabidopsis thaliana seedlings co-cultured with fungal endophyte Epichloë bromicola showed auxin (IAA)-stimulated phenotypes, and the growth-promoting effects caused by E. bromicola were further verified by the experiments of spatially separated co-culture and fungal extract treatment. IAA was detected and identified in the extract of E. bromicola culture by LC-HRMS/MS, whereas 2,3-butanediol was confirmed to be the predominant volatile active compound in the diethyl ether and ethyl acetate extracts by GC-MS. Further study observed that IAA-related genes including synthesis key enzyme genes (CYP79B2, CYP79B3, NIT1, TAA1 and YUCCA1) and controlling polar transport genes (AUX1, BIG, EIR1, AXR3 and ARF1), were highly expressed at different periods after E. bromicola inoculation. More importantly, the introduction of fungal endophyte E. bromicola could effectively promote the growth and accumulation of coixol in Coix under soil conditions. Our study showed that endophytic fungus E. bromicola might be considered as a potential inoculant for improving medicinal plant growth.

Transcriptome sequencing and signal transduction for the enhanced tanshinone production in Salvia miltiorrhiza hairy roots induced by Trichoderma atroviride D16 polysaccharide fraction.

Salvia miltiorrhiza Bunge. is commonly used to treat vascular diseases because of its activity ingredients, phenolic acids, and tanshinones. Polysaccharide fraction (PSF) extracted from Trichoderma atroviride D16 could promote tanshinone accumulation in S. miltiorrhiza hairy roots. Transcriptome sequencing was conducted to describe the global gene expression of PSF-treatment hairy roots, and data analyses showed enzymes of tanshinone biosynthetic pathways were up-regulated, and genes associated to signal molecules and transcription factors were responsive. Endogenous H2O2, abscisic acid, and nitric oxide contents were measured after PSF treatment, while tanshinone accumulations were measured with treatment of exogenous H2O2 or H2O2 inhibitor on PSF-treatment S. miltiorrhiza hairy roots. The results showed H2O2 was important in tanshinone biosynthesis caused by PSF and nitric oxide might be the downstream molecules of H2O2. Taken together, the study indicates that D16 PSF enhances the accumulation of tanshinones through enzymes of tanshinone biosynthetic pathways, signal molecules, and transcription factors.

Antiviral and Cytotoxic Isocoumarin Derivatives from an Endophytic Fungus Aspergillus oryzae.

Oryzaeins A-D (1-4), four new isocoumarin derivatives, along with five known ones (5-9) were isolated from solid cultures of an endophytic fungus Aspergillus oryzae. Their structures were elucidated by detailed spectroscopic analysis and by comparison with reported data of related derivatives. Among them, compounds 1 and 2 represent the first examples of isocoumarins possessing an unusual 2-oxopropyl group and a rare 3-hydroxypropyl group. Compounds 1 and 2 displayed moderate anti-tobacco mosaic virus activities with inhibition rates of 28.4% and 30.6%, respectively, at the concentration of 20 µM. The new compounds showed moderate inhibitory activities against several human tumor cell lines with IC50 values in the range of 2.8-8.8 µM. Supporting information available online at http://www.thieme-connect.de/products.

Comparative study of reactive oxygen species and tetracycline degradation pathways in catalytic peroxodisulfate activation by asymmetric mesoporous TiO2 and the corresponding controlled-release materials.

The removal of trace amounts of antibiotics from water environments while simultaneously avoiding potential environmental hazards during the treatment is still a challenge. In this work, green, harmless, and novel asymmetric mesoporous TiO2 (A-mTiO2) was combined with peroxodisulfate (PDS) as active components in a controlled-release material (CRM) system for the degradation of tetracycline (TC) in the dark. The formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and the degradation pathways of TC during catalytic PDS activation by A-mTiO2 powder catalysts and the CRMs were thoroughly studied. Due to its asymmetric mesoporous structure, there were abundant Ti3+/Ti4+ couples and oxygen vacancies in A-mTiO2, resulting in excellent activity in the activation of PDS for TC degradation, with a mineralization rate of 78.6%. In CRMs, ROS could first form during PDS activation by A-mTiO2 and subsequently dissolve from the CRMs to degrade TC in groundwater. Due to the excellent performance and good stability of A-mTiO2, the resulting constructed CRMs could effectively degrade TC in simulated groundwater over a long period (more than 20 days). From electron paramagnetic resonance analysis and TC degradation experiments, it was interesting to find that the ROS formed during PDS activation by A-mTiO2 powder catalysts and CRMs were different, but the degradation pathways for TC were indeed similar in the two systems. In PDS activation by A-mTiO2, besides the free hydroxyl radical (·OH), singlet oxygen (1O2) worked as a major ROS participating in TC degradation. For CRMs, the immobilization of A-mTiO2 inside CRMs made it difficult to capture superoxide radicals (·O2-), and continuously generate 1O2. In addition, the formation of sulfate radicals (·SO4-), and ·OH during the release process of CRMs was consistent with PDS activation by the A-mTiO2 powder catalyst. The eco-friendly CRMs had a promising potential for practical application in the remediation of organic pollutants from groundwater.

Diaqua-bis-(benzoato-κO)bis-[4,4,5,5-tetra-methyl-2-(pyridin-4-yl-κN)imidazoline-1-oxyl 3-oxide]cobalt(II).

The title compound, [Co(C(7)H(5)O(2))(2)(C(12)H(16)N(3)O(2))(2)(H(2)O)(2)], was obtained from a conventional solvent evaporation method. The complex mol-ecule is centrosymmetric, so pairs of equivalent ligands lie trans to each other in a slightly distorted octa-hedral CoN(2)O(4) geometry. The Co(II) ion is coordinated by the pyridine N atoms from NITpPy ligands [NITpPy is 4,4,5,5-tetra-methyl-2-(pyridin-4-yl)imidazoline-1-oxyl 3-oxide), water O atoms and two monodentate benzoate O atoms. The complex mol-ecules are connected by O-H⋯O hydrogen bonds between water mol-ecules and benzoate ligands, forming chains parallel to [100]. π-π stacking inter-actions between the benzoate ligands with centroid-centroid distances of 3.752 (2) Šconnect the chains into layers parallel to (10-1).

Bis(azido-κN)bis-[6-(pyridin-2-yl)-1,3,5-triazine-2,4-diamine-κ(2)N(1),N(6)]manganese(II).

In the title complex, [Mn(N(3))(2)(C(8)H(8)N(6))(2)], the complete molecule is generated by the application of twofold symmetry, and is in a distorted octa-hedral environment, coordinated by four N atoms of two bidentate 6-(pyridin-2-yl)-1,3,5-triazine-2,4-diamine ligands and two N atoms from two azide anions. The two chelated 6-(pyridin-2-yl)-1,3,5-triazine-2,4-diamine ligands form a dihedral angle 74.75 (5)°. The mononuclear mol-ecules are alternatively linked into layers parallel to the ac plane via N-H⋯N hydrogen bonds. Adjacent layers are connected into a three-dimensional supra-molecular framework by futher N-H⋯N hydrogen-bonding inter-actions.

Comparative study of the performance of controlled release materials containing mesoporous MnOx in catalytic persulfate activation for the remediation of tetracycline contaminated groundwater.

Controlled release materials (CRMs) are an emerging oxidant delivery technique for in-situ chemical oxidation (ISCO) that solve the problems of contaminant rebound, backflow and wake during groundwater remediation. CRMs were fabricated using ordered mesoporous manganese oxide (O-MnOx) and sodium persulfate (Na2S2O8) as active components, for the removal of antibiotic pollutants from groundwater. In both static and dynamic groundwater environments, persulfate can first be activated by O-MnOx within CRMs to form sulfate radicals and hydroxyl radicals, with these radicals subsequently dissolving out from the CRMs and degrading tetracycline (TC). Due to their excellent persulfate activation performance and good stability, the constructed CRMs could effectively degrade TC in both static and dynamic simulated groundwater systems over a long period (>21 days). The TC removal rate reached >80 %. Changing the added content of O-MnOx and persulfate could effectively regulate the performance of the CRMs during TC degradation in groundwater. The process and products of TC degradation in the dynamic groundwater system were the same as in the static groundwater system. Due to the strong oxidizing properties of sulfate radicals and hydroxyl radicals, TC molecules were completely mineralized within the groundwater systems, resulting in only trace levels of degradation products being detectable, with low- or non-toxicity. Therefore, the CRMs constructed in this study exhibited good potential for practical application in the remediation of organic pollutants from both static and dynamic groundwater environments.

catena-Poly[[[bis-(µ-4-hydroxy-benzoato)bis-[(4-hydroxy-benzoato)manganese(II)]]-di-µ-4,4'-bipyridine] 4,4'-bipyridine disolvate tetra-hydrate].

In the polymeric title complex, {[Mn(O(2)CC(6)H(4)-p-OH)(2)(C(10)H(8)N(2))]·C(10)H(8)N(2)·2H(2)O}(n), the Mn(II) atom is coordinated in a distorted octa-hedral geometry defined by four O atoms from three different carboxyl-ate ligands and two trans-N atoms from two 4,4'-bipyridine ligands. In the crystal structure, an extensive range of O-H⋯O and O-H⋯N hydrogen bonds link the complex and all non-coordinated mol-ecules into a three-dimensional network.

4-(4-Chloro-phen-yl)-6-(methyl-sulfan-yl)pyrimidin-2-amine.

In the title compound, C(11)H(10)ClN(3)S, the dihedral angle between the benzene and pyrimidine rings is 3.99 (4)°. In the crystal, inter-molecular N-H⋯N hydrogen bonds link the mol-ecules into ribbons of R(2) (2)(8) rings parallel to [100]. Weak C-H⋯S contacts connect adjacent ribbons into a two-dimensional undulating layer-like structure extending parallel to (110). The benzene and pyrimidine rings of adjacent mol-ecules have the offset face-to-face π-π stacking inter-actions in a zigzag fashion along the c axis, with perpendicular ring distances of 3.463 and 3.639 Å, and a dihedral angle between the planes of 3.99 (2)°. The distance between the ring centroids is 4.420 (2) Å.

Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) Method for Studying Magnetic Behaviors in Trinuclear Cobalt(II) Compound.

A CoII coordination polymer built from a mixed azide and zwitterionic pyridinium ions and its temperature-dependent magnetic properties are described. We used the Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) method to fit the data, and found the following results: (1) there are strong correlations between the model parameters; (2) the data at above 28 K are well fitted by the magnetism model.

Temporal echocardiography findings in patients with fulminant myocarditis: beyond ejection fraction decline / 医学前沿

The features of myocardial strains from speckle-tracking echocardiography (STE) have not been well defined in fulminant myocarditis (FM) patients. In this study, changes in the left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and global and layer-specific myocardial strains over time were monitored. We aimed to determine the echocardiographic patterns of FM and ascertain their significance in FM treatment. Twenty patients who were clinically diagnosed with FM and received mechanical life support were prospectively enrolled. Conventional echocardiographic measurements were obtained, and serial strain echocardiography was performed from admission to hospital discharge until LVEF recovery (> 50%). Global/regional peak systolic longitudinal strains (GLS/RLS) and layer-specific longitudinal strains were quantified, and their changes with time were monitored in 14 FM patients. All patients had severely impaired cardiac function. Steep improvement in LVEF and GLS were observed within 6 days. Layer-specific strain analysis showed that reduction at admission or recovery at discharge in the endocardium and epicardium strains were equal. In conclusion, FM patients who received mechanical circulatory supports exhibited steep improvement in ventricular function within 6 days. The patchy and diffused distribution pattern of reduced RLS and equally and severely impaired strain in the endocardium and epicardium are valuable features in the diagnosis of FM.

Anti-TMV activity flavones from the leaves of Yunnan local air cured tobacco.

Four new flavones, tobaflavones E-H (1-4), together with two known flavones (5 and 6), were isolated from the leaves of Dali Tiandeng tobacco (a variety of Yunnan local air cured tobacco). Their structures were elucidated by spectroscopic methods, including extensive 1D- and 2D NMR techniques. Compound 2 is the first naturally occurring flavone bearing a (4-hydroxy-6-methyl-2-oxo-2H-pyran-3-yl)methyl moiety. These compounds were also evaluated for their anti-tobacco mosaic virus (anti-TMV) activity. The results revealed that compounds 1 and 2 exhibited high anti-TMV activity with inhibition rate of 35.3% and 39.6%, respectively. The rates are higher than those of positive control. The other compounds also showed potential anti-TMV activity with inhibition rates in the range of 18.7-28.4%, respectively.

A clinical study of rhG-CSF of different dosages in preventing leukopenia after chemotherapy in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer / 中国癌症杂志

Background and purpose:Myelosuppression is the most common dose-limiting toxicity of tumor chemotherapy in which leukocytopenia and neutropenia are the most common conditions. Not only are up-titrations of the doses of chemotherapeutic drugs limited, but also normal process of the chemotherapy is affected. Filgrastim-Recombinant Human Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor (rhG-CSF) has the activity of stimulating the formation of granulocyte colony and promoting the growth, proliferation and differentiation of granulocytes which can be signiifcantly effective on leukocytopenia and neutropenia induced by chemotherapy. In this study, we observed the leukogenic effects, toxic and side effects of low, medium, and high doses of rhG-CSF used prophylactically after chemotherapy in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), to explore a rational application strategy for rhG-CSF..Methods:One hundred and twenty six patients with pathologically proved advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) under chemotherapy were digitally randomized to A, B and C groups. Filgrastim was given to patients of the three groups 24h after the end of chemotherapy. The dosages are: Group A (low dose): 300 μg of Filgrastim, s.c., qd × 1 day; Group B (medium dose): 300 μg of Filgrastim, s.c., qd × 2 days; Group C (high dose): 300 μg of Filgrastim, s.c., qd × 3 days. Then the signs and symptoms as well as toxic and side effects of Filgrastim after medication were observed.Results:Prophylactic usage of medium and high dosages of rhG-CSF could maintain WBC count at no less than 4.0×109/L in nearly 60% of patients. In patients with Grade III leukopenia, more days were needed for recovery of white blood cell (WBC) count with the low dose, while signiifcantly (P<0.05) less days were needed with the high dose. In view of the dynamic changes of neutrophil(ANC), additioning of the high dose of rhG-CSF after chemotherapy could increase the average level ofANC, notably shortening the duration of lowANC caused by chemotherapy. The incidence of infections was 4.76% for the 126 patients as a whole, 9.52% for the low dose group, and 4.76% for the middle dose group. The patients could tolerate the slight side effects incurred during treatment with Filgrastim.Conclusion:All of the three doses (low, medium, and high) of prophylactic administration of Filgrastim after chemotherapy can promote recoveries of WBCs and neutrophil granulocytes and reduce opportunities of infections. High doses of rhG-CSF can be faster and safer in increasing WBCs and neutrophil granulocytes.