Berberrubine is a novel and selective IMPDH2 inhibitor that impairs the growth of colorectal cancer.

Inosine monophosphate dehydrogenase (IMPDH) catalyzes the rate-limiting reaction in the de novo synthesis pathway of guanine nucleotides that is highly required for cancer cell outgrowth. Herein, we found that IMPDH isoform 2 (IMPDH2) is highly expressed in colorectal cancer (CRC) and is correlated with poor patient prognosis. Via structure-based virtual screening, we identified berberrubine, a critical ingredient of the medical plant Coptis chinensis, as a novel, selective, and competitive inhibitor of IMPDH2, which demonstrated over 15-fold selectivity to IMPDH2 than IMPDH1. Besides, we also confirmed the interaction between berberrubine and IMPDH2. Of note, berberrubine treatment significantly impairs the growth of human CRC cells in a dose-dependent manner, which can be rescued by supplementing with guanosine. Furthermore, oral administration of berberrubine remarkably reduced tumor volume and weight in a human cell line-derived xenograft model. Importantly, the anti-cancer activity of berberrubine was also confirmed by using the azoxymethane (AOM) / dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)-induced spontaneous CRC mouse model. Taken together, our study highlights that berberrubine acts as a novel IMPDH2 inhibitor, suppressing the growth of CRC in vitro and in vivo, providing a fresh perspective for its potential application in the treatment of CRC.

Effects of Citrus Fiber on the Gel Properties of Mutton Myofibrillar Protein.

This work investigated the effects of different additions of water-soluble citrus fiber (SCF) and water-insoluble citrus fiber (ICF) on the gel properties of the mutton myofibrillar protein (MP). The key parameters of water-holding capacity (WHC), rheological properties, and microstructure were evaluated. The addition of 2.5-10% of SCF and ICF significantly improved (p < 0.05) the WHC and gel strength of mutton MP gel. The rheological results showed that the viscoelasticity of MP with 5% SCF was the best, and the T2 relaxation time of the gel was significantly shortened. SEM results showed SCF reduced the number of pores in the MP gel, forming a more compact network structure. ICF stabilized the MP gel network structure as a filler after water absorption and expansion. However, the gel lost moisture under the action of strong external force (freeze-drying), which left large pores. These data confirmed that SCF and ICF could effectively improve the gel properties of meat products.

Effects of High-Intensity Ultrasound Treatments on the Physicochemical and Structural Characteristics of Sodium Caseinate (SC) and the Stability of SC-Coated Oil-in-Water (O/W) Emulsions.

The effects of high-intensity ultrasound treatment (0, 3, 6, 9 min) on physicochemical and structural characteristics of SC and the storage, thermal and freeze-thaw stability of SC O/W emulsions were investigated. The results showed that ultrasound treatment reduced the particle size of SC, although there were no obvious changes in zeta potential, profiles and weights. Ultrasound treatment improved surface hydrophobicity and fluorescence intensity of SC and changed ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy but had no influence on the secondary structure of SC. This indicates that ultrasounds might destroy the tertiary structure but leave most of the integral secondary structure. A scanning electron microscope (SEM) also showed that ultrasound-treated SC presented small aggregates and a loose structure. The physicochemical and structural changes of SC benefited the ability of protein adsorbing oil droplets and emulsion stability. Under stresses such as storage, thermal and freeze-thawing, the oil droplets of treated emulsions were still uniform and stable, especially at 6 min and 9 min. Overall, the high-intensity ultrasounds made the SC present small aggregates and a loose structure improving the SC O/W emulsions stability under storage, thermal and freeze-thawing environment and have great potential to stabilize the SC prepared O/W emulsions.

Flow velocity sensors arrangement for vegetated channels.

Ecological rivers or ecological channels are being widely used. Precious measurement and estimation of flow in irrigation areas are important issues in agricultural engineering. For the sustainable development of vegetation, it is necessary to consider how to use sensors to measure flow more easily in the river to protect both plants and sensors from damage. This article selects smooth channels and ecological channels of different shapes for research and presents a simplified method for arming ultrasonic sensors to obtain channel flow velocity. The flow characteristics along the normal line direction are obtained by theoretical analysis. The method uses the average flow velocity based on the normal to the channel wall to determine the location of the sensors. It combines the flow velocity determined by the sensors with the flow calculation method, thus simplifying the flow estimation steps. Experiments under flow conditions validate the efficacy of the proposed ultrasonic sensor arrangement method. This article not only simplifies the arrangement of sensors in channel flow but also improves the accuracy of the flow measurement method, which is important to promote the construction of ecological channels.

Inactivation and Membrane Damage Mechanism of Slightly Acidic Electrolyzed Water on Pseudomonas deceptionensis CM2.

Pseudomonas is considered as the specific spoilage bacteria in meat and meat products. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the inactivation efficiency and mechanisms of slightly acidic electrolyzed water (SAEW) against Pseudomonas deceptionensis CM2, a strain isolated from spoiling chicken breast. SAEW caused time-dependent inactivation of P. deceptionensis CM2 cells. After exposure to SAEW (pH 5.9, oxidation-reduction potential of 945 mV, and 64 mg/L of available chlorine concentration) for 60 s, the bacterial populations were reduced by 5.14 log reduction from the initial load of 10.2 log10 CFU/mL. Morphological changes in P. deceptionensis CM2 cells were clearly observed through field emission-scanning electron microscopy as a consequence of SAEW treatment. SAEW treatment also resulted in significant increases in the extracellular proteins and nucleic acids, and the fluorescence intensities of propidium iodide and n-phenyl-1-napthylamine in P. deceptionensis CM2 cells, suggesting the disruption of cytoplasmic and outer membrane integrity. These findings show that SAEW is a promising antimicrobial agent.

Effect of octanal on the mycelial growth of Penicillium italicum and P. digitatum.

The present study investigated the antifungal activity of octanal against Penicillium italicum and P. digitatum. Results showed that octanal exhibited strong antifungal activity against the test pathogens in a dose-dependent manner. Scanning electron microscopy observation revealed that octanal obviously altered the morphology of P. italicum and P. digitatum hyphae by causing the loss of cytoplasm and distortion of mycelia. A rapid increase in the membrane permeability of P. italicum and P. digitatum was observed after treated with octanal at minimum inhibitory concentration or minimum fungicidal concentration, evidenced by the release of cell constituents, the extracellular conductivity and the extracellular potential of hydrogen. In addition, octanal apparently induced a decrease in total lipid contents of P. italicum and P. digitatum cells. These results suggested that the antifungal activity of octanal against P. italicum and P. digitatum can be attributed to the disruption of the cell membrane integrity and the leakage of cell components.

[The therapeutic effect of triamcinolone acetonide with Pingyangmycin on lymphatic malformations in oral and maxillofacial regions].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the therapeutic effect of Triamcinolone Acetonide and Pingyangmycin on lymphatic malformations in oral and maxillofacial regions. METHODS: 29 patients with lymphatic malformations in oral and maxillofacial regions were divided into two groups to receive intra-lesion injection with Triamcinolone Acetonide and Pingyangmycin in experimental group, or with Pingyangmycin only in control group. The lesions involution and facial appearance were observed. RESULTS: 2 years after treatment, the volume of small cyst and micro-cyst type mass shrank to (3.7 +/- 0.3)% and (4.2 +/- 0.4)%, respectively in experimental group, while (15.4 +/- 1.3)% and (24.1 +/- 3.1)% in control group. The lesion involution was markedly obvious in experimental group. Compare with control group, the facial asymmetry was greatly improved in experimental group. CONCLUSIONS: Intra-lesion injection with Triamcinolone Acetonide and Pingyangmycin is an effective method for the treatment of lymphatic malformations in oral maxillofacial regions. The mass can be shrank markedly to improve facial symmetry.