Taraxasterol extracted from Ixeridium gramineum (Fisch.) Tzvel. Attenuated D-GalN/LPS-induced fulminant hepatitis by modulating the JAK/STAT and TNF signalling pathways.

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Taraxasterol (TAR), a compound highly abundant and easily obtainable from Tibetan medicine Ixeridium gramineum (Fisch.) Tzvel., exhibits a variety of biological effects, including hepatoprotective, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant activities.

Soil Organic Carbon Increases With Decreasing Microbial Carbon Use Efficiency During Vegetation Restoration.

Microbial carbon (C) use efficiency (CUE) describes the proportion of organic C used by microorganisms for anabolic processes, which increases with soil organic C (SOC) content on a global scale. However, it is unclear whether a similar relationship exists during natural vegetation restoration in terrestrial ecosystems. Here, we investigated the patterns of CUE along a 160-year vegetation restoration chronosequence (from farmland to climax forest) estimated by stoichiometric modeling; additionally, we examined the relationship between CUE and SOC content and combined these results with a meta-analysis.

Polysaccharide of Dicliptera chinensis (L.) Juss. alleviated cholestatic liver disease by modulating the FXR pathway.

Dicliptera chinensis (L.) Juss., is an herb known for its anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties.

Bergenin inhibits hepatic fat deposition by activating the AMPK signaling pathway, thereby attenuating alcoholic liver disease.

Alcoholic liver disease (ALD) is a prevalent liver condition that arises from prolonged and excessive alcohol intake. Bergenin (BER) is an effective phytotherapeutic agent that exhibits pharmacological properties, including anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidative effects. To establish an in vivo model of ALD, C57BL/6 mice were continuously fed a high-fat diet (HFD) and administered alcohol gavage for 8 weeks, while concurrently administering BER and evaluated for therapeutic effects.

Polygala fallax Hemsl polysaccharides alleviated alcoholic fatty liver disease by modifying lipid metabolism via AMPK.

Alcoholic fatty liver disease (AFLD) is characterized by excessive lipid accumulation in the liver. This study aimed to investigate the protective effects and mechanisms of Polygala fallax Hemsl polysaccharides (PFPs) on AFLD. PFPs were purified and structurally characterized.

A Bacterium-like Particle Vaccine Displaying Envelope Proteins of Canine Distemper Virus Can Induce Immune Responses in Mice and Dogs.

Canine distemper virus (CDV) can cause fatal infections in giant pandas. Vaccination is crucial to prevent CDV infection in giant pandas. In this study, two bacterium-like particle vaccines F-GEM and H-GEM displaying the trimeric F protein or tetrameric H protein of CDV were constructed based on the Gram-positive enhanced-matrix protein anchor (GEM-PA) surface display system.

C:N:P stoichiometry of plants, soils, and microorganisms: Response to altered precipitation.

Precipitation changes modify C, N, and P cycles, which regulate the functions and structure of terrestrial ecosystems. Although altered precipitation affects above- and belowground C:N:P stoichiometry, considerable uncertainties remain regarding plant-microbial nutrient allocation strategies under increased (IPPT) and decreased (DPPT) precipitation. We meta-analyzed 827 observations from 235 field studies to investigate the effects of IPPT and DPPT on the C:N:P stoichiometry of plants, soils, and microorganisms.

The efficacy and mechanism of Angelica sinensis (Oliv.) Diels root aqueous extract based on RNA sequencing and 16S rDNA sequencing in alleviating polycystic ovary syndrome.

Background: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) leads to persistent anovulation, hyperandrogenism, insulin resistance, and polycystic ovary, and is mainly characterized by menstrual disorders, and reproductive dysfunction. Angelica sinensis (Oliv.) Diels root has been used in many classical formulas of traditional Chinese medicine, and is commonly used to treat various gynecological diseases.

The Effect of Bergenin on Isonicotinic Acid Hydrazide and Rifampicin-Induced Liver Injury Revealed by RNA Sequencing.

Bergenin (BER), a natural component of polyphenols, has a variety of pharmacological activities, especially in improving drug metabolism, reducing cholestasis, anti-oxidative stress and inhibiting inflammatory responses. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of BER on liver injury induced by isonicotinic acid hydrazide (INH) and rifampicin (RIF) in mice. The mice model of liver injury was established with INH (100 mg/kg)+RIF (100 mg/kg), and then different doses of BER were used to intervene.

Multi-response assessment for carbon emission and hardening effect in laser surface quenching.

Laser surface quenching (LSQ) is gaining popularity in engineering applications, but it generates non-negligible carbon emissions. However, existing research mostly focuses on quenching performance. Little attention has been paid to carbon emissions of LSQ process.

Effects of scoparone on non-alcoholic fatty liver disease revealed by RNA sequencing.

Scoparone (SCO) is known to have curative effect of alleviating liver injury. The purpose of this study was to observe the therapeutic effect and possible mechanism of SCO against high-fat diet (HFD) induced non-alcoholic liver disease (NAFLD) through experiments and RNA sequencing. Male Kunming mice were fed with HFD for 8 weeks to establish a mouse model of NAFLD, and SCO was used to treat NAFLD.

Pentamethylquercetin Regulates Lipid Metabolism by Modulating Skeletal Muscle-Adipose Tissue Crosstalk in Obese Mice.

Irisin is an exercise-induced hormone that regulates lipid metabolism. The present study investigates whether the anti-obesity effect of the natural flavonoid pentamethylquercetin (PMQ) is related to irisin secretion from skeletal muscle in whole animals and cultured cells. Obese mice induced by monosodium glutamate were administered oral PMQ to determine blood irisin level and in vivo parameters of lipid metabolism, and cultured mouse C2C12 myoblasts and 3T3-L1 preadipocytes were employed to investigate the related molecular identities.

Modulation of turbulent Rayleigh-Bénard convection under spatially harmonic heating.

We numerically study turbulent Rayleigh-Bénard (RB) convection under spatial temperature modulation, where the bottom temperature varies sinusoidally around a mean value in space. Both two- and three-dimensional simulations are performed over the Rayleigh number range 10^{7}≤Ra≤10^{10} and the wave number range 1≤k≤120 at fixed Prandtl number Pr=0.7.

Driving factors of ecosystem services and their spatiotemporal change assessment based on land use types in the Loess Plateau.

A clear understanding of the driving factors for different ecosystem services (ESs) is quite essential for sustainable ecosystem management. It is important to strengthen research in ESs and social sustainable development to identify the main driving factors of different ESs. This study assessed carbon sequestration (CS), water yield (WY) and soil conservation (SC) from 2000 to 2018 in the Loess Plateau using CASA (The Carnegie-AmesStanford Approach), InVEST (Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Trade-offs) and RUSLE (Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation) models.

Effects of vegetation restoration types on soil nutrients and soil erodibility regulated by slope positions on the Loess Plateau.

Soil degradation is significantly increased driven by soil nutrient loss and soil erodibility, thus, hampering the sustainable development of the ecological environment and agricultural production. Vegetation restoration has been widely adopted to prevent soil degradation given its role in improving soil nutrients and soil erodibility. However, it is unclear which vegetation type has the best improving capacity from soil nutrient and soil erodibility perspectives.

Pentamethylquercetin Attenuates Cardiac Remodeling via Activation of the Sestrins/Keap1/Nrf2 Pathway in MSG-Induced Obese Mice.

Objective: Obesity causes a variety of metabolic alterations that may contribute to abnormalities of the cardiac structure and function (obesity cardiomyopathy). In previous works, we have shown that pentamethylquercetin (PMQ) significantly improved metabolic disorders in obese mice and it inhibited pressure overload-induced cardiac remodeling in mice. However, its potential benefit in obesity cardiomyopathy remains unclear.

Pentamethylquercetin protects against cardiac remodeling via activation of Sestrin2.

Oxidative stress is widely involved in pathophysiological processes of cardiac remodeling. Molecules associated with antioxidant functions may be ideal targets for reversing cardiac remodeling. Sestrin2 is the important component of endogenous antioxidant defense, while there is little information on the pathophysiological roles of it in cardiac remodeling.

Pentamethylquercetin induces adipose browning and exerts beneficial effects in 3T3-L1 adipocytes and high-fat diet-fed mice.

Browning white adipocytes may be a new target in anti-obesity therapy. Pentamethylquercetin (PMQ) has been shown to have anti-obesity effects in monosodium glutamate-induced obese mice. Here, we aimed to study the anti-obesity effects of PMQ in vitro and in vivo and to determine if adipose browning is involved in the mechanism underlying the anti-obesity effects of PMQ.

Disease-specific signature of serum miR-20b and its targets IL-8 and IL-25, in myasthenia gravis patients.

Myasthenia gravis (MG) is an autoimmune disorder characterized by antibodies directed against components of the neuromuscular junction. Currently, the diagnosis and therapeutic evaluation rely on the serum acetylcholine receptor (AchR) antibody titer, which is not reliable for monitoring. The disruption of the menus had been implicated in many immunological disorders, including MG.

Betaine reverses the memory impairments in a chronic cerebral hypoperfusion rat model.

Vascular dementia (VaD) is the second reason for the cognitive decline in aged people, but the effective therapy is still missing. The chronic cerebral hypoperfusion (CCH) had been widely found in VaD patients and is thought to be the key reason for cognitive impairment. Betaine is a natural product that had been implicated in many biological processes and had been used for the therapy of some neurodegenerative disease, such as Alzheimer's disease.

Pentamethylquercetin ameliorates fibrosis in diabetic Goto-Kakizaki rat kidneys and mesangial cells with suppression of TGF-β/Smads signaling.

Pentamethylquercetin (PMQ) has been shown to possess glucose-lowering properties, but its effect on renal fibrosis in diabetes is still unclear. This study was designed to investigate the effect of PMQ on renal fibrosis and the underlying mechanisms in spontaneous type II diabetic Goto-Kakizaki rats and mesangial cells in high glucose. We found that in Goto-Kakizaki rats, PMQ treatment attenuated glomerular volume, glycogen deposition, renal collagen and fibronectin accumulation, in addition to amelioration of diabetic symptoms, including reduction of urine volume and urine glucose levels.

Pentamethylquercetin protects against diabetes-related cognitive deficits in diabetic Goto-Kakizaki rats.

Diabetic patients have a signifiantly higher risk of developing all forms of dementia. Pentamethylquercetin (PMQ) has been proven to have potential as an anti-diabetic agent. Nevertheless, whether PMQ can improve diabetes-induced cognitive dysfunction has not been investigated.

Anti-diabetic effects of pentamethylquercetin in neonatally streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats.

Pentamethylquercetin (PMQ), a methylated quercetin derivative, was screened for anti-diabetic effects in neonatally streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats (n-STZ diabetic rats). Streptozotocin (90 mg/kg) was administered intraperitoneally to 2-day-old male pups to induce diabetes. PMQ was administered at doses of 2.