Identification of three types of O-glycosylated flavonoids in Dendrobium loddigesii, Dendrobium primulinum, Dendrobium crepidatum, Dendrobium porphyrochilum, and Dendrobium hancockii using mass spectrometry.

RATIONALE: Flavonoids, representing the pharmacologically active ingredients, are found widely in Dendrobium species. The biodiversity of Dendrobium makes the identification of its varieties all the more complicated. Previous studies showed that C-glycosylated flavones and a few O-glycosylated flavonols could be used in the identification of various Dendrobium species. Accordingly, this study further explores the significance of the identification of various types of O-glycosylated flavonoids in Dendrobium species. METHODS: High-performance liquid chromatography coupled with electrospray ionization multistage tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-ESI-MSn ) was used to identify the chemical constituents in five types of Dendrobium: Dendrobium loddigesii, Dendrobium primulinum, Dendrobium crepidatum, Dendrobium porphyrochilum, and Dendrobium hancockii. RESULTS: A total of 41 O-glycosylated flavonoids and 3 C-glycosylated flavones were identified, among which O-glycosylated dihydroflavones were the main flavonoids in D. loddigesii and D. primulinum, O-Glycosylated flavonols were rich in both D. crepidatum and D. porphyrochilum characterized by the main aglycone, substituted sugars, and their structural characteristics, and O-glycosylated flavones were the main constituents in D. hancockii. CONCLUSIONS: In this study, three types of O-glycosylated flavonoids in the five Dendrobium species were determined to have certain significance. This also provides a reference for the identification of other O-glycosylated flavonoids in Chinese herbs.

Efficient adsorption of Cr(VI) in acidic environment by nano-scaled schwertmannite prepared through pH regulation: characteristics, performances, and mechanism.

Acidic Cr(VI)-containing wastewater has received increasing attention in recent years. Schwertmannite is a suitable adsorbent for its acid resistance and good adsorption ability. However, it shows poor Cr(VI) adsorption performance under acidic conditions. Herein, inspired by the fast neutralization-mineralization process of acid mine drainage (AMD) triggered by alkaline rocks, a novel nano-scaled schwertmannite (Sch-2.7) with high Cr(VI) adsorption capacity was synthesized at constant pH of 2.7 via adding OH-. Compared with common schwertmannite (Sch), appropriate OH- effectively improved mineral yield (the precipitation efficiency of Fe: 96.75% vs. 29.93%), specific surface area (65.1 m2/g vs. 18.9 m2/g), surface group content, and further Cr(VI) adsorption ability of Sch-2.7. The maximum adsorption capacity was 54.17 (pH = 3), 61.59 (pH = 4), and 66.5 mg/g (pH = 5) for Sch-2.7, whereas only 20.35, 24.51, and 27.17 mg/g for Sch. On average, the former was 2.53 times higher than the latter. Temperature and coexisting ions had little influences on the sorption process of Sch-2.7. The mechanism analysis demonstrated that the Cr(VI) removal by Sch-2.7 was a more thermodynamic favorable process due to abundant reactive-active components on Sch-2.7 for adsorption reaction. This work provided new insight into performance optimization and application potential on Cr(VI) removal of schwertmannite.

Modified chemical mineralization-alkali neutralization technology: Mineralization behavior at high iron concentrations and its application in sulfur acid spent pickling solution.

Mineralization coupled with neutralization is a dual-function technology for disposing acidic iron-rich waters, which can recover the valuable iron in the form of secondary mineral and concurrently purify the wastewater. In this study, a modified technology for treating high Fe wastewater (sulfur acid spent pickling liquor, 62 g Fe/L) was proposed based on the specific investigation of the mineralization behaviors in Fe concentration range of 20-70 g/L. Results showed that high SO42-/Fe2+ molar ratio (> 2.0) tended to trigger gelation phenomena at Fe concentrations above 30 g/L. Fe specie distribution suggested that the insufficient polymerization among Fe-OH complexes might be responsible for the gelation phenomena, since the strong Fe-SO4 coordination almost completely suppressed the Fex(OH)y(3x-y)+ form (a general terms of Fe3+ hydrolysates and their polymers). Modified mineralization strategies were proposed, including pretreatment with dilution or BaCl2/CaCl2 precipitation, of which CaCl2 pretreatment was a versatile and low-cost method. Following CaCl2 pretreatment, chemical mineralization converted above 90% of iron into secondary mineral, which therefore drastically reduced the alkali consumption (from 164.2 g/L to 1.4 g/L) and sludge yield (from 328.1 g/L to 2.4 g/L) in subsequent neutralization treatment. The resultant mineral was identified as schwertmannite, and exhibited efficient adsorption capacity toward arsenite (364.2 mg/g). The modified chemical mineralization-alkaline neutralization is a cost-effective technology for the treatment of the acidic iron-rich waters. In practical applications, several regulating strategies should be further explored to improve the mineral purity, and the mineralization conditions must be optimized according to the Fe and SO42- concentrations in wastewater.

[Serum changes of adiponectin, insulin resistance and their correlation in endometrial cancer patients].

OBJECTIVE: To explore changes of serum adiponectin and insulin resistance in patients with endometrial cancer and to evaluate the clinical significance and correlation. METHODS: The serum levels of adiponectin and fasting insulin were determined by ELISA, electro-chemilluminometry and radioimmunoassay in 35 patients with endometrial cancer [all patients divided into two groups, A1 group belonged to without postmenopausal when first visiting (n = 20), A2 group belonged to postmenopausal when first visiting (n = 15)] and 30 cases of health control. The result of homeostasis model assessment-insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) index was calculated. RESULTS: The levels of adiponectin in A1 group was lower than that of health control group [(6.7 ± 1.1) versus (10.0 ± 1.4) ng/L, P < 0.05], and HOMA-IR was higher than that of health control group (3.5 ± 1.8 versus 1.1 ± 0.7, P < 0.05). While there were not significant difference between A2 group and health control group (P > 0.05). Adiponectin and insulin resistance was negatively correlated (r = -0.389, P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Adiponectin reducing and insulin resistance in reproductive age patients may be the independent factors to promote endometrial cancers.