Chlorogenic acid (CGA) is abundant in various plants and notably in coffee beans. This study investigated the bactericidal activity of CGA combined with ultraviolet-A light (UVA, 365 nm) (CGA + UVA) against Escherichia coli DH5α, with the aim of developing novel strategies for food preservation and healthcare. CGA + UVA treatment was superiorin reducing bacterial survival than either treatment alone.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWe report the development of a metabolically engineered bacterium for the fermentative production of polyesters containing aromatic side chains, serving as sustainable alternatives to petroleum-based plastics. A metabolic pathway was constructed in an Escherichia coli strain to produce poly[d-phenyllactate(PhLA)], followed by three strategies to enhance polymer production. First, polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) granule-associated proteins (phasins) were introduced to increase the polymer accumulation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Integr Plant Biol
October 2024
Systemin, the first peptide hormone identified in plants, was initially isolated from tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) leaves. Systemin mediates local and systemic wound-induced defense responses in plants, conferring resistance to necrotrophic fungi and herbivorous insects. Systemin is recognized by the leucine-rich-repeat receptor-like kinase (LRR-RLK) receptor SYSTEMIN RECEPTOR1 (SYR1), but how the systemin recognition signal is transduced to intracellular signaling pathways to trigger defense responses is poorly understood.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: The duties of paramedics and emergency medical technicians (P&EMTs) are continuously changing due to developments in medical systems. This study presents evaluation goals for P&EMTs by analyzing their work, especially the tasks that new P&EMTs (with less than 3 years’ experience) find difficult, to foster the training of P&EMTs who could adapt to emergency situations after graduation.
Methods: A questionnaire was created based on prior job analyses of P&EMTs.
Reproduction is the important process of transmitting one's genetic information to the next generation [...
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBovine testicular hyaluronidase (BTH), which accelerates the absorption and dispersion of drugs by decomposing hyaluronan in subcutaneous tissues, has been used in medical applications, including local anesthesia, ophthalmology, and dermatosurgery. The requirement of N-glycans for the activity of human hyaluronidase has been reported, and BTH has greater activity than human hyaluronidase. However, the N-glycan characteristics of BTH are unclear.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPlastics are indispensable in everyday life and industry, but the environmental impact of plastic waste on ecosystems and human health is a huge concern. Microbial biotechnology offers sustainable routes to plastic production and waste management. Bacteria and fungi can produce plastics, as well as their constituent monomers, from renewable biomass, such as crops, agricultural residues, wood and organic waste.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis study aimed to investigate differences in prefrontal cortex activation between older adults with and without depressive symptoms during cognitive tasks using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). We examined 204 older participants without psychiatric or neurological disorders who completed the Geriatric Depression Scale, digit span, Verbal Fluency Test, and Stroop test. At the same time, prefrontal cortex activation was recorded using fNIRS.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDiagnostics (Basel)
May 2023
We describe a 40-year-old female patient who presented with sleep disturbance, intermittent headache, and gradual subjective cognitive decline. F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) showed mild FDG hypometabolism in bilateral parietal and temporal lobes. However, F-florbetaben (FBB) amyloid PET revealed diffuse amyloid retention in the lateral temporal cortex, frontal cortex, posterior cingulate cortex/precuneus, parietal cortex, and cerebellum.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe etiology of early-onset Alzheimer's disease (EOAD) is associated with alterations in the production of amyloid beta (Aβ) species caused by mutations in the , , and genes. Mutations affect intra- or inter-molecular interactions and processes between the γ-secretase complex and amyloid precursor protein (APP), leading to the aberrant sequential cleavage of Aβ species. A 64-year-old woman presented with progressive memory decline, mild right hippocampal atrophy, and a family history of Alzheimer's dementia (AD).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSialylated -glycan isomers with α2-3 or α2-6 linkage(s) have distinctive roles in glycoproteins, but are difficult to distinguish. Wild-type (WT) and glycoengineered (mutant) therapeutic glycoproteins, cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated antigen-4-immunoglobulin (CTLA4-Ig), were produced in Chinese hamster ovary cell lines; however, their linkage isomers have not been reported. In this study, -glycans of CTLA4-Igs were released, labeled with procainamide, and analyzed by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) to identify and quantify sialylated -glycan linkage isomers.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNatural killer (NK) cells are an attractive cell source in cancer immunotherapy due to their potent antitumor ability and promising safety for allogenic applications. However, the clinical outcome of NK cell therapy has been limited due to poor persistence and loss of activity in the cytokine-deficient tumor microenvironment. Benefits from exogenous administration of soluble interleukin-2 (IL-2) to stimulate the activity of NK cells have not been significant due to cytokine consumption and activation of other immune cells, compromising both efficacy and safety.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNanomaterials (Basel)
February 2023
Slippery liquid-infused porous surface (SLIPS) realized on commercial materials provides various functionalities, such as corrosion resistance, condensation heat transfer, anti-fouling, de/anti-icing, and self-cleaning. In particular, perfluorinated lubricants infused in fluorocarbon-coated porous structures have showed exceptional performances with durability; however, they caused several issues in safety, due to their difficulty in degradation and bio-accumulation. Here, we introduce a new approach to create the multifunctional lubricant-impregnated surface with edible oils and fatty acid, which are also safe to human body and degradable in nature.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Chromatogr B Analyt Technol Biomed Life Sci
January 2023
Background: N-glycans in glycoproteins can affect physicochemical properties of proteins; however, some reported N-glycan structures are inconsistent depending on the type of glycoprotein or the preparation methods.
Objective: To obtain consistent results for qualitative and quantitative analyses of N-glycans, N-glycans obtained by different preparation methods were compared for two types of mammalian glycoproteins.
Methods: N-glycans are released by peptide-N-glycosidase F (PF) or A (PA) from two model mammalian glycoproteins, bovine fetuin (with three glycosylation sites) and human IgG (with a single glycosylation site), and labeled with a fluorescent tag [2-aminobenzamide (AB) or procainamide (ProA)].
Interactions between metals and microbes are critical in geomicrobiology and vital in microbial ecophysiological processes. Methane-oxidizing bacteria (MOB) and ammonia-oxidizing microorganisms (AOM) are key members in aerobic environments to start the C and N cycles. Ammonia and methane are firstly oxidized by copper-binding metalloproteins, monooxygenases, and diverse iron and copper-containing enzymes that contribute to electron transportation in the energy gain pathway, which is evolutionally connected between MOB and AOM.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: The aim of this study was to assess the effect of topical steroids on acute-onset olfactory dysfunction in patients infected with COVID-19.
Design And Setting: Systematic review and meta-analysis of cohort studies.
Participants: Patients infected with COVID-19.
Background: The identification of N-glycans in plant glycoproteins or plant-made pharmaceuticals is essential for understanding their structure, function, properties, immunogenicity, and allergenicity (induced by plant-specific core-fucosylation or xylosylation) in the applications of plant food, agriculture, and plant biotechnology. N-glycosidase A is widely used to release the Nglycans of plant glycoproteins because the core-fucosylated N-glycans of plant glycoproteins are hydrolyzed by N-glycosidase A but not by N-glycosidase F. However, the efficiency of Nglycosidase A activity in plant glycoproteins remains unclear.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSialylated and core-fucosylated N-glycans in human transferrin (HTF) are used as glycan biomarkers due to their increased or decreased characteristics in certain diseases. However, their absolute quantities remain unclear. In this study, N-glycans of HTF were identified by UPLC and LC-MS/MS using fluorescence tags [2-aminobenzamide (AB) and procainamide (ProA)] and columns [HILIC and anion exchange chromatography-HILIC (AXH)].
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEarly-onset Alzheimer’s disease (EOAD) is characterized by the presence of neurological symptoms in patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) before 65 years of age. Mutations in pathological genes, including amyloid protein precursor (APP), presenilin-1 (PSEN1), and presenilin-2 (PSEN2), were associated with EOAD. Seventy-six mutations in PSEN2 have been found around the world, which could affect the activity of γ-secretase in amyloid beta processing.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPrevious studies have found an association between serum albumin levels and cognitive function. However, the results of this association are inconsistent, and the effect of Apolipoprotein E (APOE) on the association is less clear. Using retrospective cohort data (2008-2020), we investigated whether chronic serum albumin was associated with cognitive performance in older adults.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFUnruptured intracranial aneurysms have a risk of rupture, so coil embolization is widely practiced as it preserves a patent artery. There are complications of coil procedures, such as patent artery occlusion and thromboembolism, which can result in retinal artery occlusion. We report onretinal artery occlusion following coil embolization of anterior communicating artery aneurysm.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPhospholipase D6 (PLD6) plays pivotal roles in mitochondrial dynamics and spermatogenesis, but the cellular and subcellular localization of endogenous PLD6 in testis germ cells is poorly defined. We examined the distribution and subcellular localization of PLD6 in mouse testes using validated specific anti-PLD6 antibodies. Ectopically expressed PLD6 protein was detected in the mitochondria of PLD6-transfected cells, but endogenous PLD6 expression in mouse testes was localized to the perinuclear region of pachytene spermatocytes, and more prominently, to the round (Golgi and cap phases) and elongating spermatids (acrosomal phase); these results suggest that PLD6 is localized to the Golgi apparatus.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBovine submaxillary mucin (BSM) is a natural polymer used in biomaterial applications for its viscoelasticity, lubricity, biocompatibility, and biodegradability. -glycans are important for mucin stability and function, but their structures have not been fully characterized, unlike that of -glycans. In this study, BSM -glycans were investigated using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPhospholipase D (PLD) isoforms PLD1 and PLD2 serve as the primary nodes where diverse signaling pathways converge. However, their isoform-specific functions remain unclear. We showed that PLD1 and PLD2 selectively couple to toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) and interleukin 4 receptor (IL-4R) and differentially regulate macrophage polarization of M1 and M2 via the LPS-MyD88 axis and the IL-4-JAK3 signaling, respectively.
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