Sesquiterpene lactones from Carpesium abrotanoides L. and their activity in inducing protective autophagy.

Fourteen sesquiterpene lactones were isolated from the whole plant of Carpesium abrotanoides L. Their structures were determined on the basis of comprehensive spectroscopic data analysis. All compounds were screened for their cytotoxic activity, and compound 6 showed the strongest activity (IC50 2.73 - 7.21 µM) against five human cancer cell lines, including A549, HepG2, HCT116, MDA-MB-231, and CNE2. Compound 6 was further investigated. Compound 6 effectively induced G2/M cell cycle arrest and ROS accumulation in a dose-dependent manner, which further led to apoptosis in cancer cells. Interestingly, compounds 1 and 6 could also activate protective autophagy, which was reported for the first time in sesquiterpene isolated from Carpesium abrotanoides. In addition, compounds 1 and 6 could induce lysosomal biogenesis by 173.2% and 163.7%, respectively. In sum, sesquiterpene lactones from Carpesium abrotanoides could induce apoptosis and protective autophagy in cancer cells, which provide a serial of compounds with potential clinical applications.

Effect of Different Temperature-Controlled Ultrasound on the Physical and Functional Properties of Micellar Casein Concentrate.

Micellar casein concentrate (MCC) is a novel dairy ingredient with high protein content. However, its poor functional properties impair its potential for further application, highlighting the importance of using innovative processing methods to produce modified MCC, such as ultrasound (US). This work investigated the impact of US on the physical and functional properties of MCC under temperature-controlled and -uncontrolled conditions for different time intervals. Under temperature-controlled ultrasound (TC-US) treatment, a reduction was found in the supernatant particle size of casein micelles. Soluble calcium content and hydrophobicity increased following ultrasound treatment at 20 °C, resulting in a remarkable improvement in emulsification. However, long-time ultrasonication led to an unstable state, causing the MCC solutions to show shear thinning behavior (pseudoplastic fluid). Compared with 50 °C temperature-controlled ultrasonication, ultrasonication at 20 °C had a greater influence on particle size, viscosity and hydrophobicity. These findings indicate that 20 °C TC-US could be a promising technology for the modification of MCC.

Ten new nortriterpenes from Euphorbia resinifera and their anti-tomato yellow leaf curl virus activities.

Ten new nortriterpenes, euphorbiumrins A-J (1-10), together with three known analogues (11-13) were isolated from the latex of Euphorbia resinifera. Their structures were established on the basis of extensive spectroscopic analyses (IR, UV, HRESIMS, 1D and 2D NMR). Their inhibitions on tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV) were evaluated and compound 5 exhibited significant anti-TYLCV activity with an inhibition rate of 71.7% at concentration of 40 µg/mL.

Two New C21 Steroidal Glycosides from the Roots of Cynanchum paniculatum.

Two new C21 steroidal glycosides, paniculatumosides H and I, together with four known ones were isolated from the roots of Cynanchum paniculatum (Bge.) Kitag. Their structures were identified by spectroscopic methods including extensive 1D and 2D NMR techniques. All compounds were subjected to detect the anti-tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) activities and their cytotoxities against three human tumor cell lines (SMMC-7721, MDA-MB-231 and A549). The results showed that compounds 1 and 5 exhibited potent protective activities against TMV, while 2, 4 and 6 had moderate effects on the SMMC-7721 cancer cells viability.