Impact of thermal ultrasound on enzyme inactivation and flavor improvement of sea cucumber hydrolysates.

In this study, the effects of the thermal ultrasonic enzyme inactivation process on flavor enhancement in sea cucumber hydrolysates (SCHs) and its impact on the inactivation of neutral proteases (NPs) were investigated. The body wall of the sea cucumber was enzymatically hydrolyzed with NPs. On the one hand, the structure of NPs subjected to different enzyme inactivation methods was analyzed using ζ-potential, particle size, and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy. On the other hand, the microstructure and flavor changes of SCHs were examined through scanning electron microscopy, E-nose, and gas chromatography-ion mobility spectrometry (GC-IMS). The results indicated that thermal ultrasound treatment at 60 °C could greatly affect the structure of NPs, thereby achieving enzyme inactivation. Furthermore, this treatment generated more pleasant flavor compounds, such as pentanal and (E)-2-nonenal. Hence, thermal ultrasound treatment could serve as an alternative process to traditional heat inactivation of enzymes for improving the flavor of SCHs.

lncRNA-MIAT rs9625066 polymorphism could be a potential biomarker for ischemic stroke.

BACKGROUND: Ischemic stroke (IS) is a common and serious neurological condition that is highly fatal but so far no early diagnostic markers are available. Myocardial infarction-associated transcript (MIAT) is a long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) that could lead to IS by inducing autophagy and apoptosis in neuronal cells. However, there has been no report on the link between susceptibility to IS and the single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of MIAT. This study aimed to investigate the association between MIAT gene polymorphisms and IS risk. METHODS: A total of 320 IS patients and 310 age-, sex- and race-matched controls were included in this study. Four polymorphisms (rs2157598, rs5761664, rs1894720, and rs9625066) were genotyped by using SNPscan technique. RESULTS: Among the 4 polymorphisms of MIAT, only rs9625066 was associated with IS risk (CA vs. CC: adjusted OR = 0.55, 95% CI, 0.37-0.85, P = 0.006; AA vs. CC: adjusted OR = 0.39, 95% CI, 0.16-0.94, P = 0.036; (AA + CA vs. CC: adjusted OR = 0.53, 95% CI, 0.35-0.80, P = 0.002; A vs. C adjusted OR = 0.59, 95% CI, 0.42-0.82, P = 0.002). Haplotype analysis showed a 1.32-fold increase (95% CI, 1.05-1.67, P = 0.017) in IS risk for rs2157598-rs5761664-rs1894720-rs9625066 (A-C-G-C). Logistic regression analysis identified some independent impact factors for IS including rs9625066 AA/AC, TC, TG, HDL-C (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The rs9625066 polymorphism of MIAT might be associated with IS susceptibility in Chinese population, in which AA/CA plays a protective role in IS, whereas the CC genotype increases the risk of developing IS, suggesting it might be a marker predictive of IS risk.

Association between miR-365 polymorphism and ischemic stroke in a Chinese population.

Background: Ischemic stroke (IS) represents a major cause of morbidity and mortality across the globe. The aberrant expression of miR-365 has been found to be implicated in a wide array of human diseases, including atherosclerosis and cancer. Studies on single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in miRNA genes can help gain insight into the susceptibility to the condition. This study aimed to examine the relationship between miR-365 SNPs and the risk of IS. Methods: The study recruited 215 IS patients and 220 controls. The SNPscans genotyping was employed to genotype three polymorphic loci (rs121224, rs30230, and rs178553) of miR-365. The relative expression of miR-365 in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of the patients and controls was determined by using real-time quantitative PCR. Results: The miR-365 rs30230 polymorphism exhibited a significant association with the risk of developing IS (TC vs. CC: adjusted OR = 0.55, 95% CI: 0.33-0.92, P = 0.022; TT vs. CC: adjusted OR = 0.34, 95% CI: 0.14-0.85, P = 0.021; TC +TT vs. CC: adjusted OR = 0.51, 95% CI: 0.31-0.83, P = 0.007; T vs. C: adjusted OR = 0.57, 95% CI: 0.39-0.83, P = 0.004). Haplotype analysis revealed that the C-T-G haplotype was associated with a decreased risk of IS (OR = 0.68, 95% CI: 0.46-1.00, P = 0.047). Furthermore, miR-365 expression was significantly higher in IS patients than in controls (P < 0.001). Interestingly, patients with rs30230 TC or TT genotypes had lower miR-365 levels compared to their counterparts with CC genotypes (P < 0.001). Conclusions: The miR-365 rs30230 polymorphism might bear an association with IS susceptibility in the Chinese population, and the rs30230 TC/TT genotype might be a protective factor against IS.

Insights into peptide profiling of sturgeon myofibrillar proteins with low temperature vacuum heating.

BACKGROUND: Protein oxidation during food processing causes changes in the balance of protein-molecular interactions and protein-water interactions, ultimately leading to protein denaturation, which results in the loss of a range of functional properties. Therefore, how to control the oxidative modification of proteins during processing has been the focus of research. RESULTS: In the present study, the intrinsic fluorescence value of the myofibrillar proteins (MP) decreased and the surface hydrophobicity value increased, indicating that the heat treatment caused a significant change in the conformation of the MP. With an increase in heating temperature, protein carbonyl content increased, total sulfhydryl content decreased, and protein secondary structure changed from α-helix to ß-sheet, indicating that protein oxidation and aggregation occurred. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis revealed that heat treatment can lead to the degradation of proteins, especially myosin heavy chain, although actin had a certain thermal stability. In total, 733 proteins were identified by proteomics, and the protein oxidation caused by low temperature vacuum heating (LTVH) was determined to be mild oxidation dominated by malondialdehyde and 4-hydroxynonenal by oxidation site division. CONCLUSION: The present study has revealed the effect of LTVH treatment on the protein oxidation modification behavior of sturgeon meat, and explored the effect mechanism of LTVH treatment on the processing quality of sturgeon meat from the perspective of protein oxidation. The results may provide a theoretical basis for the precise processing of aquatic products. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.

Interaction and binding mechanism of lipid oxidation products to sturgeon myofibrillar protein in low temperature vacuum heating conditions: Multispectroscopic and molecular docking approaches.

In this work, the binding mechanism of myofibrillar protein (MP) with malondialdehyde and 4-hydroxy-2-nonenal under low temperature vacuum heating was investigated via multispectroscopic and molecular docking. The results showed that binding interaction and increasing temperature caused significant changes in the conformations as well as a decrease in the value of protein intrinsic fluorescence, surface hydrophobicity, and fluorescence excitation-emission matrix spectra. Furthermore, the decrease in α-helix and ß-turn, increase in ß-sheet and a random coil of MP, imply the MP molecules to be more unfolded. Isothermal titration calorimetry and molecular docking results showed that main driving force for binding with MP was hydrogen bond, and the binding ability of malondialdehyde was superior to that of 4-hydroxy-2-nonenal. Moreover, increasing the heating temperature was beneficial to the binding reaction and intensified the conformational transition of MP. These results will provide a reference for further studies on the lipid and protein interaction of sturgeon.

[Multimedia Distribution Characteristics and Risk Assessment of 22 PPCPs in the Water Environment of Qingpu District, Yangtze River Delta Demonstration Area].

In this study, 50 surface water and sediment samples were collected from 25 sampling points in Qingpu District (including Taipu River basin, Jinze Reservoir, and Qingxi country park) in the Yangtze River Delta integration demonstration area, and 22 pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) in the samples were analyzed using high-performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC/MS-MS). The distribution characteristics, sources, and influencing factors of targeted PPCPs in the study area were studied in detail. The ecological and health risks of the target PPCPs were evaluated using the quotients method. The results showed that a total of 19 PPCPs were detected in the surface water and sediment samples from 25 sampling points in Qingpu District, with total concentrations ranging from 0.06 to 178.67 ng·L-1 and 0.07 to 37.68 ng·g-1, respectively. The average value of sulfachloropyridazine (SCP) in the surface water was the highest with a concentration of 129.54 ng·L-1, whereas the average value of sulfamethoxazole (SMX) in the sediment was the highest with a concentration of 70.62 ng·g-1. The spatial distribution of the total amount of PPCPs showed a trend of Qingxi country park > Jinze Reservoir > Taipu River basin. Principal component analysis showed that the main sources of pollution were animal antibiotics used in aquaculture and the discharge of domestic sewage. There was a significant correlation between lg Koc and lg Kd (P<0.05), indicating that the organic carbon plays an important role in the distribution of the target PPCPs in water and sediments. The ecological risk assessment results revealed that the fungicides (TCC and TCS) in the surface waters showed a moderate risk to aquatic organisms of different trophic levels. The Qingxi country park and Jinze Reservoir were the regions with the highest ecological risks of PPCPs in surface water and sediment. The health risk entropy (HQ) of people of all age groups exposed through drinking was less than 1; however, with the continuous emission and accumulation of PPCPs, the pollution control of PPCPs in the environment still requires further attention.

[Electroacupuncture improved learning-memory ability by reducing hippocampal apoptosis and suppressing JNK signaling in rats with vascular dementia].

OBJECTIVE: To observe the effect of electroacupuncture (EA) stimulation on the expression of c-Jun terminal kinase(JNK)signaling pathway-related proteins in the hippocampus of vascular dementia (VD) rats, so as to explore its mechanisms underlying improvement of VD. METHODS: Male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into sham operation, model and EA groups (n＝10 rats per group). The VD model was prepared by repeated occlusion of the bilateral common carotid arteries for 10 min and reperfusion for 10 min (3 times in total). The rats in the EA group received EA (2 Hz, 2 mA) at "Dazhui"(GV14)，"Baihui"(GV20), and bilateral "Housanli"(ST36) ，"Geshu"(BL17) for 10 min, once daily for 14 days. The learning-memory abi-lity was detected by Morris water maze tests, the distribution of hippocampal neurons detected by Nissl staining, and the apoptosis of hippocampal neurons detected by using TdT-mediated dUTP nick-end labeling (TUNEL) method. The expressions of JNK, phosphorylated JNK (p-JNK), cysteine-containing aspartate-specific proteases-8 (Caspase-8) and Caspase-3 proteins were detected by Western blot. RESULTS: After modeling and compared with the sham operation group, the escape latency was significantly prolonged (P<0.01) and the number of safe-platform quadrant crossing obviously decreased (P<0.01), suggesting a reduction of learning-memory ability. The number of hippocampal neurons was considerably reduced (P<0.01), and that of hippocampal apoptotic neurons remarkably increased in the model group (P<0.01). Whereas, the expression levels of hippocampal apoptosis-related proteins as JNK, p-JNK, Caspase-8 and Caspase-3, as well as the apoptotic index were significantly up-regulated (P<0.01). Following EA intervention, the learning-memory ability was apparently improved (P<0.01), and the number of hippocampal neurons was considerably increased (P<0.01), the hippocampal apoptotic cell number, apoptosis index and the expression levels of JNK, p-JNK, Caspase-8 and Caspase-3 were significantly down-regulated (P<0.01). CONCLUSION: EA intervention can improve the learning-memory ability of VD rats, which may be associated with its effects in reducing hippocampal apoptosis by suppressing JNK signaling pathway.

The Role of Astragaloside IV against Cerebral Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury: Suppression of Apoptosis via Promotion of P62-LC3-Autophagy.

Background: Ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) caused by ischemic stroke treatments leads to brain injury, and autophagy plays a role in the pathology. Astragaloside IV is a potential neuroprotectant, but its underlying mechanism on cerebral I/R injury needs to be explored. The objective of this study is to investigate the neuroprotective mechanism of Astragaloside IV against cerebral I/R injury. Methods: Middle cerebral artery occlusion method (MCAO) and oxygen and glucose deprivation/reoxygenation (OGD/R) method were used to simulate cerebral I/R injury in Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats and HT22 cells, respectively. The neurological score, 2,3,5-Triphe-nyltetrazolium chloride (TTC) staining, and transmission electron microscope were used to detect cerebral damage in SD rats. Cell viability and cytotoxicity assay were tested in vitro. Fluorescent staining and flow cytometry were applied to detect the level of apoptosis. Western blotting was conducted to examine the expression of proteins associated with autophagy. Results: This study found that Astragaloside IV could decrease the neurological score, reduce the infarct volume in the brain, and alleviate cerebral I/R injury in MCAO rats. Astragaloside IV promoted cell viability and balanced Bcl-2 and Bax expression in vitro, reduced the rate of apoptosis, decreased the expression of P62, and increased the expression of LC3II/LC3I in HT22 cells after OGD/R. Conclusions: These data suggested that Astragaloside IV plays a neuroprotective role by down-regulating apoptosis by promoting the degree of autophagy.

[Effect of rosmarinic acid from Sarcandra glabra in inhibiting proliferation and migration and inducing apoptosis of MDA-MB-231 cells via regulation of expressions of Bcl-2 and Bax].

Rosmarinic acid is one of anti-tumor ingredients in the Sarcandra glabra. After treatment with 0, 10, 30, 90, 270 and 810 µmol·L⁻¹ rosmarinic acid for 24, 48, 72 hours respectively, the inhibitory effects on MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cells were observed by CCK-8 and cell wound healing test. No significant inhibition effecton proliferation and migration was observed in MCF-7 cell. However, 90, 270 and 810 µmol·L⁻¹ rosmarinic acid could inhibit the proliferation and migration of MDA-MB-231 cells in a dose-dependent and time-dependent manner. Flow cytometry was further used to detect apoptosis ratios of MDA-MB-231 cells after Annexin V-FITC/PI staining, and significant apoptosis was observed after rosmarinic acid treatment. Real-time PCR and Western blot tests were carried out to detect the expressions of apoptosis-related genes. The down-regulation of the Bcl-2 expression and the up-regulation of the Bax expression were observed in MDA-MB-231 cells after rosmarinic acid treatment. The results suggested that rosmarinicacid can inhibit the proliferation and migration, and induce the apoptosis of MDA-MB-231 cells, which may be correlated with the down-regulation of Bcl-2 gene and the up-regulation of Bax gene.

Changes in Waist Circumference and Abdominal Obesity among Chinese Adults over a Ten-year Period.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to describe changes in waist circumference (WC) and prevalence of abdominal obesity over a period of 10 years among Chinese adults in different socio-economic status (SES). METHODS: Data derived from the China Nutrition and Health Surveillance during 2002 and 2010-2012. We calculated the mean WC and the prevalence of abdominal obesity by gender, place of residence, SES indicators (education, income, and marital status), and body mass index (BMI) categoriesand used pooled t-tests to assess the differences between the two time periods. RESULTS: 26.0% of men and 25.3% of women had abdominal obesity in 2010-2012. The age-adjusted mean WC increased by 2.7 cm among men and 2.1 cm among women; the age-adjusted prevalence of abdominal obesity increased by 7.7% among men and 5.3% among women. The rising trends were observed in all subgroups except for a negative growth in high-income women. People living in rural areas with low education and income and with a BMI of 18.5 to 23.9 kg/m2 had a greater absolute and relative increase in WC. People living in rural areas with low income had a greater relative increase in abdominal obesity. CONCLUSION: The mean WC and prevalence of abdominal obesity among Chinese adults have increased during the past 10 years. Gender differences were noted using various SES indicators.

[Characteristics and Mechanism of Biological Nitrogen and Phosphorus Removal Granular Sludge Under Carbon Source Stress].

In SBR reactor, the mature granular sludge fed with sodium acetate was gradually cultivated with different carbon sources (sodium acetate/glucose ratio was 1:0, 3:1, 1:1, 1:3 and 0:1, in terms of COD, respectively). During the five stages, the physical, biochemical properties, extracellular polymeric substances (EPS), phosphorus fractions and nitrogen and phosphorus removal efficiency of granular sludge were studied. 705 days' experimental results were showed as follows. At stage Ⅳ, the granular sludge had the smallest diameter of 0.5 mm; moreover the phosphorus release/uptake rate, denitrification rate and the total phosphorus (TP) content were the lowest. While at stages Ⅰ and Ⅱ, the phosphorus release/uptake and denitrification rates were the highest, meanwhile, the TP content reached up to 72.36 mg·g-1, and the EPS content was about 350 mg·g-1, as a result, the nitrogen and phosphorus removal efficiencies were both over 94%. Nevertheless at stage Ⅴ, the biochemical rates were slightly slower than values of stages Ⅰ and Ⅱ, simultaneously the TP, glycogen and EPS contents in sludge were maintained at 69.60 mg·g-1, 224.18 mg·g-1 and 200 mg·g-1, respectively, while high nitrogen and phosphorus removal efficiency was obtained. During all stages, Ca-P was the main phosphorus fraction, and inorganic phosphorus(IP) was closely related to phosphorus removal of granular sludge.

Comparison of Undernutrition Prevalence of Children under 5 Years in China between 2002 and 2013.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the undernutrition status of children under 5-year in China, and study the trend between 2002 and 2013). METHODS: The study was based on two national surveys. Undernutrition was determined against WHO's 2006 growth standards. The prevalence in 2013 and 2002 was weighted by China sixth National Population Census (2010). The relationship between undernutrition and gender/age groups/different areas use weighted logistic regression. RESULTS: The results indicated the overall prevalence of stunting, underweight, and wasting of Chinese children under 5-year was 8.1%, 2.4%, and 1.9% in 2013, respectively. The prevalence of stunting was higher for children aged 12-47 month, while underweight was higher for children aged 48-59 month. The prevalence of undernutrition was higher in rural areas than in urban areas, especially in poor rural areas. There was a decline of stunting, underweight, and wasting between 2002 and 2013 among the children, with greater reduction in rural areas than in urban areas. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of undernutrition of children under 5-year remains high in rural areas especially in poor rural areas in China. It is urgent to take action to control undernutrition in the vulnerable areas and subgroups.

4,4,5,5-Tetra-methyl-2-[1,3,6,8-tetra-bromo-7-(4,4,5,5-tetra-methyl-1,3,2-dioxaborolan-2-yl)pyren-2-yl]-1,3,2-dioxaborolane.

The complete mol-ecule of the title compound, C(28)H(28)B(2)Br(4)O(4), is generated by the application of a centre of inversion. In the mol-ecule, the BO(2) plane is perpendicular to that through the pyrene ring [dihedral angle = 86.27 (13)°]. In the crystal, mol-ecules stack into columns along the b axis, the closest contact between these being of the type C-Br⋯π.

[The nutrition status of special population living in the areas affected by Wenchuan Earthquake after 3 months].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate and analyze the nutritional status of infants, preschool and primary school students, pregnant and lactating women in Wenchuan earthquake disaster area after 3 months. METHODS: In August 2008, the nutritional and health status information of special population were collected and evaluated using the questionnaires, anthropometric and hemoglobin concentration measurements from four settlements of villages and towns in Mao and Mianzhu Country of Sichuan and Kang Country and Wudu District in Gansu provinces. A total of 236 infants aged below 36 months, 48 preschool children, 368 primary students, 32 pregnant women and 72 lactating women were investigated. Principal investigator indexes included the low body weight, growth retardation, anemia prevalence, two-week prevalence of diarrhea and respiratory disease, food intake and nutrition-related diseases, the percentage of patients morbidity of 36 months infants, preschool and primary school students; the prevalence of anemia, the prevalence of nutrition-related diseases of pregnant and lactating women. RESULTS: The stunting prevalence was 14.6% (34/236) and the anemia prevalence was up to 40.1% (61/236) among infants younger than 36 months. Besides, the percentages of infants and young children suffered from the respiratory-infected disease and diarrhea within recent two weeks were 40.4% (95/236) and 30.2% (71/236) respectively. The percentage of low body weight of preschool children was 14.6% (7/48) and the growth retardation and anemia prevalence was 14.6% (7/48) and 39.6% (19/48), respectively. Among primary students, 6.3% (23/368) showed growth retardation and 12.2% (45/368) were anemia. The prevalence of anemia status of pregnant women and lactating mothers were 53.9% (17/32) and 24.4% (18/72) respectively. The main food composition of 45.8% (33/72) lactating women were grain and vegetables, 29 (40.3%), 32 (44.4%), 28 (38.9%) and 53 (73.6%) lactating women did not have animal originated (including meat, aquatic, livestock and poultry products) food, eggs, beans and their products, milk and dairy products, respectively. CONCLUSION: Special population lived in disaster area have suffered different degree of malnutrition. The main dietary pattern was vegetable food. The consumption of meat, eggs, milk and milk products was relatively insufficient.

Labdane diterpenoids and highly methoxylated bibenzyls from the liverwort Frullania inouei.

Four undescribed labdane diterpenoids, 1,2-dehydro-3,7-dioxo-manoyl oxide (1), 1,2-dehydro-7 beta-hydroxy-3-oxo-manoyl oxide (2), 3,7-dioxo-manoyl oxide (3), and 3beta-hydroxy-7-oxo-manoyl oxide (4) together with three known diterpenoids (5-7) and four highly methoxylated bibenzyls (8-11) were isolated from the liverwort Frullania inouei. The absolute structures of 1-4 were established by combined analysis of NMR data, CD data coupled with TDDFT CD calculations, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction measurement. Cytotoxicity tests to human tumor KB, KB/VCR, K562 or K562/A02 cells showed bibenzyls 8-11 inhibited cell proliferation with ID(50) values ranging from 11.3 to 49.6 microM and overcame the multidrug resistance (MDR) with the reversal fold (RF) values ranging from 3.19 to 10.91 (5 microM) for vincristine-resistant KB/VCR and RF values from 4.40 to 8.26 (5 microM) for adriamycin-resistant K562/A02 cells, respectively. However, none of the diterpenoids were found to be active (ID(50)>50 microM).

Poly[[[aqua(2,2'-bipyridine-kappa2N,N')manganese(II)]-mu-croconato-kappa4O,O':O'',O'''] monohydrate]: a one-dimensional coordination polymer connected by hydrophilic-hydrophilic and lipophilic-lipophilic interactions at 135 K.

In the title one-dimensional coordination polymer, {[Mn(C(5)O(5))(C(10)H(8)N(2))(H(2)O)].H(2)O}(n), each Mn(II) ion is seven-coordinated by four O atoms from two croconate ligands, two N atoms from a 2,2'-bipyridine (2,2'-bipy) ligand and one O atom from an aqua ligand. The croconate ligand bridges the Mn(II) ions in a bis-bidentate chelation mode, forming an extended [Mn(C(5)O(5))](n) chain running parallel to the [001] direction, with the lipophilic 2,2'-bipy ligands lying along one side and the hydrophilic water molecules along the opposite side. Coordinated water and solvent water molecules are arranged in the hydrophilic layer, which is characterized by O-H...O hydrogen bonds between croconate ligands. Meanwhile, 2,2'-bipy ligands from adjacent chains partially overlap and exhibit pi-pi interactions to form a lipophilic layer. The hydrophilic and lipophilic layers are arranged alternately to build a layer structure.

[Effect of Wenyang Yiqi Pingchuan recipe on pathomorphology of lung and its regulation on lung tissue contents of nitric oxide and endothelin-1 in rats with bronchial asthma].

OBJECTIVE: To observe the effect of Wenyang Yiqi Pingchuan Recipe (WYPR) on the pathomorphology of lung and its regulation on lung tissue contents of nitric oxide (NO) and endothelin-1 (ET-1) in rats with bronchial asthma. METHODS: Sixty SD rats were randomly divided into 6 groups: the normal group, the model group, and the four treated groups treated with high dose WYPR, low dose WYPR, Guilong Kechuanning Capsule and aminophylline, respectively, 10 in each group. Except those in the normal group, all rats of bronchial asthma model were established by egg protein sensitization and provocated by inhalation. The treatments were given via gastrogavage every day starting from the first provocation (the 3rd week of modeling) to the execution. Rats were sacrificed after 4-week treatment, their lung was taken for determining the contents of NO and ET-1, and histopathological changes in lung were observed as well. RESULTS: Compared with the normal group, the contents of NO and ET-1 in the lung tissue, the thickness of bronchus wall and bronchus smooth muscle, the number of eosinophil granulocytes increased in the model group and the low dose WYPR group, showing statistical significance (P < 0. 01). As compared with the model group, all the above-mentioned indices were lower in all the 4 treated groups (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01), but the lowering in the WYPR treated groups (either high or low dose) was more significant than in the Guilong Kechuanning treated group (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01); while compared with the aminophylline treated group, the high dose WYPR group was superior in reducing eosinophile granulocytes (P < 0.01), but no significance between them was shown in NO and ET-1 levels (P > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: WYPR could reduce the eosinophilic infiltration, decrease the contents of NO and ET-1 in the lung tissue, restrain the air passage inflammation and inhibit the pathological process as airway remodeling.

Lobarialides A-C, antifungal triterpenoids from the lichen Lobaria kurokawae.

Three novel fernane-type triterpenoids, lobarialides A-C (1-3, resp.), together with two known ones were isolated by antifungal bioassay-guided fractionation of the lichen Lobaria kurokawae. Their structures including configurations were established on the basis of extensive spectroscopic analyses, and that of 1 was confirmed by a single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. Antifungal tests of the five triterpenoids showed that the activity increased with the increment of the number of COO groups.

5-(4,5-Ethylenedithio-1,3-dithiol-2-ylidene)-1,3,4,6-tetrathiapentalen-2-one (EDTO-TTP) and 5-[4,5-(ethene-1,2-diyldithio)-1,3-dithiol-2-ylidene]-1,3,4,6-tetrathiapentalen-2-one (VDTO-TTP).

The title sulfur-rich organic molecular crystals, namely EDTO-TTP (C(9)H(4)OS(8)) and VDTO-TTP (C(9)H(2)OS(8)), are characterized by conjugated C-S bonds and S...S intermolecular short contacts. The planar EDTO-TTP molecules are parallel packed and exhibit strong intermolecular interactions, including side-by-side transverse S...S contacts, face-to-face longitudinal pi-pi interactions and C-H...O hydrogen bonding. On cooling the EDTO-TTP crystal from 220 to 120 K, the cell dimensions and the intermolecular distances (such as S...S contacts and especially pi-pi spacings) become shorter, while the intramolecular bonds become longer. The curved VDTO-TTP molecules are packed in such a way as to make the crystal fully depolarized. The intermolecular interactions of the VDTO-TTP crystal are relatively weak, because of the weak pi-pi interactions and the lack of hydrogen bonding.

(E)-2-{3-[4-(Diphenyl-amino)styr-yl]-5,5-dimethyl-cyclo-hex-2-enyl-idene}-malono-nitrile.

In the title compound, C(31)H(27)N(3), the cyclo-hexene ring has an envelope configuration. In the crystal structure, there is an 34 Å(3) void around the inversion center, but the low electron density (0.13 e Å(-3)) in the difference Fourier map suggests no solvent mol-ecule occupying this void. No hydrogen bonding is found in the crystal structure.