Evaluation of Removal Behavior of Cesium in Contaminated Soil Based on Speciation Analysis.

The removal efficiency of Cs from contaminated soil depends on its chemical species bound with the soil components. Therefore, in this study, we observed the elution behavior of Cs based on speciation analysis in a Cs removal experiment conducted on contaminated soils. The treatment method was optimized using simulated contaminated soil and applied to actual contaminated soil on a large scale as well.

Upregulation of colonic luminal polyamines produced by intestinal microbiota delays senescence in mice.

Prevention of quality of life (QOL) deterioration is associated with the inhibition of geriatric diseases and the regulation of brain function. However, no substance is known that prevents the aging of both body and brain. It is known that polyamine concentrations in somatic tissues (including the brain) decrease with increasing age, and polyamine-rich foods enhance longevity in yeast, worms, flies, and mice, and protect flies from age-induced memory impairment.

QSAR evaluation of the Ch'an Su and related bufadienolides against the colchicine-resistant primary liver carcinoma cell line PLC/PRF/5(1).

QSAR analysis has been used to identify the essential structural requirements for increasing the inhibitory activities of selected bufadienolides from the Chinese drug Ch'an Su (and other sources) against the primary liver carcinoma cell line PLC/PRF/5 (PLC) and the derived colchicine-resistant line (COL). The variable substituent domain of the proposed pharmacophore of the bufadienolides was investigated using a Comparative Molecular Field Analysis (CoMFA) approach. A model with considerable predictive ability was obtained.

Biological activity of a novel nonpeptide antagonist to the interleukin-6 receptor 20S,21-epoxy-resibufogenin-3-formate.

Interleukin (IL)-6 is a key mediator in the regulation and coordination of the immune response and participates in pathogenesis of cancer cachexia, autoimmune disease, and postmenopausal osteoporosis. In the course of a screening program aimed at IL-6 inhibitor from natural products, we isolated 20S,21-epoxy-resibufogenin-3-formate (ERBF) from bufadienolide and examined the effect of ERBF on activities of various cytokines. ERBF dose dependently suppressed IL-6 activity and caused a parallel rightward shift of dose-response curves to IL-6 at concentrations of 0.

Isolation and structure of a 20,21-epoxybufenolide series from "Ch'an Su".

Steroid bufenolides resulting from epoxidation of the 17beta-2-pyrone ring of bufadienolides are rare. Five 20,21-epoxybufenolides, namely, 20S,21-epoxyresibufogenin (1), 20R,21-epoxyresibufogenin (2), 3-O-formyl-20S,21-epoxyresibufogenin (3), 3-O-formyl-20R,21-epoxyresibufogenin (4), and 3-oxo-20S,21-epoxyresibufogenin (5), were isolated from the Chinese toad skin extract drug Ch'an Su. The structures were elucidated by spectroscopic and chemical methods.