Recovering high value-added anthocyanins from blueberry pomace with ultrasound-assisted extraction.

Food waste is a potential source to replace fresh materials for obtaining functional ingredients. Blueberry pomace contains considerable amounts of anthocyanins. In this study, we investigated ultrasonic-assisted extraction (UAE) of anthocyanins from blueberry pomace.

Color Stability Enhancement and Antioxidation Improvement of Sanhua Plum Wine under Circulating Ultrasound.

Anthocyanins contribute to the attractive color of fruit wine, and their excessive degradation is deleterious to quality, especially for wine with an inherently low anthocyanin content, such as Sanhua plum wine. Ultrasonic treatment is well recognized for wine color maintenance. In the present study, fresh Sanhua plum wine was ultrasonic-treated and aged in barrels for three months.

Using untargeted metabolomics to profile the changes in roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa L.) anthocyanins during wine fermentation.

In this study, an UHPLC-QE-MS approach in combination with multivariate statistical analyses was used to investigate the metabolic profiles, especially the anthocyanin profiles, during the fermentation of roselle wine. Overall, a large number of different metabolites (e.g.

Estimation of SPAD value in waterlogged winter wheat based on characteristic indices of hyperspectral and digital image.

To explore the optimal monitoring method for soil and plant analyzer development (SPAD) of winter wheat under waterlogging stress based on hyperspectral and digital image techno-logy, the correlations between SPAD of the waterlogged winter wheat and fifteen indices of hyperspectral characteristic and fourteen indices of digital image feature were analyzed under a micro-plot which could be irrigated and drainage separately. Then, the BP neural network models for SPAD estimation were constructed based on the optimal monitoring feature indices. Compared with the normal winter wheat, SPAD and the value of hyperspectral reflectance did not change under short-term waterlogging (less than 7 d), whereas the SPAD was significantly decreased after more than 12 d waterlogging treatment with the value being close to zero at the late stage of growth.

Nitrogen and phosphorus losses from paddy fields and the yield of rice with different water and nitrogen management practices.

The assessment and control of losses of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) from paddy fields is critical to improve the quality of water and atmosphere on earth. A field experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of three N managements (local common N fertilization practice, urea mixed with controlled-release N fertilizer, and optimized and reduced N fertilizer, designated CN, U + CRF and ON, respectively) on N and P losses through runoff and leaching from a paddy field, and yield of rice under shallow-irrigation and deep-sluice (SIDS) and continuous flooding irrigation (FI) in the Jianhan Plain of China in 2016. The results showed that, compared with FI, SIDS significantly reduced the frequency of irrigation and amount of irrigation water, resulting in an increase of 16.

Improved Jayaweera-Mikkelsen model to quantify ammonia volatilization from rice paddy fields in China.

Current estimates of China's ammonia (NH) volatilization from paddy rice differ by more than twofold, mainly due to inappropriate application of chamber-based measurements and improper assumptions within process-based models. Here, we improved the Jayaweera-Mikkelsen (JM) model through multiplying the concentration of aqueous NH in ponded water by an activity coefficient that was determined based on high-frequency flux observations at Jingzhou station in Central China. We found that the improved JM model could reproduce the dynamics of observed NH flux (R = 0.

Endothelial nitric oxide synthase gene polymorphisms associated with susceptibility to high altitude pulmonary edema in Chinese railway construction workers at Qinghai-Tibet over 4 500 meters above sea level.

Objective: To examine whether the polymorphisms of endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) gene are associated with the susceptibility to high altitude pulmonary edema (HAPE) in Chinese railway construction workers at Qinghai-Tibet where the altitude is over 4 500 m above sea level.

Methods: A case-control study was conducted including 149 HAPE patients in the construction workers and 160 healthy controls randomly recruited from their co-workers, matching the patients in ethnicity, age, sex, lifestyle, and working conditions. Three polymorphisms of eNOS gene, T-786C in promoter, 894G/T in exon 7, and 27bp variable number tandem repeat (VNTR) in intron 4, were genotyped using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and confirmed with DNA sequencing.

Inhibitory effects of alpha-zearalenol on angiotensin II-induced integrin beta3 mRNA via suppression of nuclear factor-kappaB.

Objective: To investigate the effect of alpha-zearalenol on angiotensin II-induced beta3 integrin mRNA expression in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs).

Methods: The mRNA level in integrin beta3 was determined by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. Endothelial NF-kappaB activity was determined by the luciferase activity assay of plasmid NF-kappaB-LUC.

Angiotensin II stimulates endothelial integrin beta3 expression via nuclear factor-kappaB activation.

The present study examined the effect and part mechanism of angiotensin II-stimulated integrin beta3 gene expression in human umbilical vein endothelial cells. Protein level and mRNA level of integrin beta3 expression were determined using enzyme-linked immunoadsorbent assay and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. Four plasmids of 5'-different deletion of integrin beta3 gene promoter were constructed to transiently transfected into cells to uncover the region in response to angiotensin II.

TSC-36/FRP inhibits vascular smooth muscle cell proliferation and migration.

Objective: In-stent restenosis is a vascular proliferation/migration disorder characterized by hyperplasia of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). Because mounting evidence suggests that the therapeutic potential of anti-proliferation and anti-migration therapy, we investigated possible inhibitory effects of the matricellular protein TGF-beta-stimulated clone 36 (TSC-36) on vascular smooth muscle cell proliferation and migration in vitro and in vivo.

Methods: Human umbilical artery smooth muscle cells (SMCs) were treated with inducting agents daidzein or estradiol.

Roles of NF-kappaB and SP-1 in oxidative stress-mediated induction of platelet-derived growth factor-B by TNFalpha in human endothelial cells.

Platelet-derived growth factor-B (PDGF-B) is upregulated by proinflamatory stimuli in the early stages of atherosclerosis. However, its mechanisms are not fully elucidated. In the present study, by using the antioxidant N-acetylcysteine (NAC), we investigated in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) the roles of oxidative stress in PDGF-B expression induced by tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFalpha) and its underlying mechanisms.

[mRNA expression of muscarinic receptors in spinal cord and brainstem in morphine dependent rats].

Aim: To observe mRNA expression of muscarinic acetylcholine receptors in spinal cord and brainstem in morphine dependent or withdrawal rats.

Methods: The mRNA expression level of m1, m2, m3, m4 and m5 were determined by RT-PCR, the beta-actin mRNA expression was used as internal control.

Results: The mRNA level of m1, m2, m3, m4 and m5 in spinal cord and m1 and m2 in brainstem were increased significantly during morphine dependence, and the levels of m1, m2, m3 and m4 in spinal cord and m1 in brainstem were decreased 1 h after the injection of naloxone (4 mg.