Advancements in production, assessment, and food applications of salty and saltiness-enhancing peptides: A review.

Salt is important for food flavor, but excessive sodium intake leads to adverse health consequences. Thus, salty and saltiness-enhancing peptides are developed for sodium-reduction products. This review elucidates saltiness perception process and analyses correlation between the peptide structure and saltiness-enhancing ability. These peptides interact with taste receptors to produce saltiness perception, including ENaC, TRPV1, and TMC4. This review also outlines preparation, isolation, purification, characterization, screening, and assessment techniques of these peptides and discusses their potential applications. These peptides are from various sources and produced through enzymatic hydrolysis, microbial fermentation, or Millard reaction and then separated, purified, identified, and screened. Sensory evaluation, electronic tongue, bioelectronic tongue, and cell and animal models are the primary saltiness assessment approaches. These peptides can be used in sodium-reduction food products to produce "clean label" items, and the peptides with biological activity can also serve as functional ingredients, making them very promising for food industry.

The Progression of Postmortem Biochemistry Analysis in Forensic Discrimination of Cause of Death / 中山大学学报(医学科学版)

The discrimination of the cause of death is an important part in forensic medicine. With the advantages of simple operation， high test efficiency， and easy sensitivity to the death mechanism of the deceased， postmortem biochemistry analysis has become a significant auxiliary analysis method for discrimination of the cause of death. In this paper， we discuss the development status， advantages and current problems of postmortem biochemical analysis， and then describe the application prospect of postmortem biochemistry in the discrimination of the cause of death by posing feasible solutions， so that to provide an idea for this research.

Virtual ecological technology: Concepts, systems, and application perspectives.

Virtual ecological technology is a new technology that builds the foundation of a digital ecological system, simulates the process of ecological evolution, and establishes a global knowledge analysis system based on a unified spatio-temporal benchmark. It is a new direction for the interdisciplinary integration and development of eco-logy, geographic information science, computer science and other subjects towards modernization, informatization, and intelligence. Research, development, and application of virtual ecological technology is of great significance for the development of ecology as a discipline, ecosystem management, and regional sustainable development. Curren-tly, research on virtual ecological technology is still in its infancy and lacks a complete and clearly defined framework, making it difficult to support systematic iterative development and scientific analysis. In this paper, starting from the main theories and objectives of modern ecology, we summarized the main contents and technical requirements of virtual ecological construction, and proposed a key technical system of virtual ecology that integrated vir-tual geography and digital twin technology. From the perspective of application scenarios, we analyzed the application capabilities of virtual ecological technology in air pollution and energy analysis. Finally, we summarized the deve-lopment potential of virtual ecological technology in the digital construction of the ecological environment, intelligent computing, and realistic expression of different levels of ecological space resources transformation under the background of new generation of information technology, both at the local computing point breakthrough and the global technology point fusion aspects. This would enrich and advance the technical capabilities that support China's ecological space resource transformation.

Preparation Methods and Functional Characteristics of Regenerated Keratin-Based Biofilms.

The recycling, development, and application of keratin-containing waste (e.g., hair, wool, feather, and so on) provide an important means to address related environmental pollution and energy shortage issues. The extraction of keratin and the development of keratin-based functional materials are key to solving keratin-containing waste pollution. Keratin-based biofilms are gaining substantial interest due to their excellent characteristics, such as good biocompatibility, high biodegradability, appropriate adsorption, and rich renewable sources, among others. At present, keratin-based biofilms are a good option for various applications, and the development of keratin-based biofilms from keratin-containing waste is considered crucial for sustainable development. In this paper, in order to achieve clean production while maintaining the functional characteristics of natural keratin as much as possible, four important keratin extraction methods-thermal hydrolysis, ultrasonic technology, eco-friendly solvent system, and microbial decomposition-are described, and the characteristics of these four extraction methods are analysed. Next, methods for the preparation of keratin-based biofilms are introduced, including solvent casting, electrospinning, template self-assembly, freeze-drying, and soft lithography methods. Then, the functional properties and application prospects of keratin-based biofilms are discussed. Finally, future research directions related to keratin-based biofilms are proposed. Overall, it can be concluded that the high-value conversion of keratin-containing waste into regenerated keratin-based biofilms has great importance for sustainable development and is highly suggested due to their great potential for use in biomedical materials, optoelectronic devices, and metal ion detection applications. It is hoped that this paper can provide some basic information for the development and application of keratin-based biofilms.

Advances, Challenges and Future Trends of Cell-Free Transcription-Translation Biosensors.

In recent years, the application of cell-free protein synthesis systems in biosensing has been developing rapidly. Cell-free synthetic biology, with its advantages of high biosafety, fast material transport, and high sensitivity, has overcome many defects of cell-based biosensors and provided an abiotic substitute for biosensors. In addition, the application of freeze-drying technology has improved the stability of such systems, making it possible to realize point-of-care application of field detection and broadening the application prospects of cell-free biosensors. However, despite these advancements, challenges such as the risk of sample interference due to the lack of physical barriers, maintenance of activity during storage, and poor robustness still need to be addressed before the full potential of cell-free biosensors can be realized on a larger scale. In this review, current strategies and research results for improving the performance of cell-free biosensors are summarized, including a comprehensive discussion of the existing challenges, future trends, and potential investments needed for improvement.

Effect of the Addition of Thermoplastic Resin and Composite on Mechanical and Thermal Properties of Epoxy Resin.

When the thermoplastic composites reach the service limits during the service, the recovery and utilization are the key concerns. Meanwhile, the improvement of strength, toughness and durability of epoxy resin is the effective method to prolong the service life of materials and structures. In the present paper, three kinds of thermoplastic resins (polypropylene-PP, polyamide 6-PA6 and polyether-ether-ketone-PEEK) and composites (carbon fiber-PEEK, glass fiber-PA6 and glass fiber-PP) were adopted as the fillers to reinforce and toughen the epoxy resin (Ts). The mechanical, thermal and microscopic analysis were conducted to reveal the performance improvement mechanism of Ts. It can be found that adding thermoplastic resin and composite fillers at the low mass ratio of 0.5~1.0% brought about the maximum improvement of tensile strength (7~15%), flexural strength (7~15%) and shear strength (20~30%) of Ts resin. The improvement mechanism was because the addition of thermoplastic fillers can prolong the cracking path and delay the failure process through the load bearing of fiber, energy absorption of thermoplastic resin and superior interface bonding. In addition, the thermoplastic composite had better enhancement effect on the mechanical/thermal properties of Ts resin compared to thermoplastic resin. When the mass ratio was increased to 2.0~3.0%, the agglomeration and stress concentration of thermoplastic filler in Ts resin appeared, leading to the decrease of mechanical and thermal properties. The optimal addition ratios of thermoplastic resin were 0.5~1.0% (PEEK), 1.0~2.0% (PA6) and 0.5~1.0% (PP) to obtain the desirable property improvement. In contrast, the optimal mass ratios of three kinds of composite were determined to be 0.5~1.0%. Application prospect analysis indicated adding the thermoplastic resin and composite fillers to Ts resin can promote the recycling and reutilization of thermoplastic composites and improve the performance of Ts resin, which can be used as the resin matrix, interface adhesive and anti-corrosion coating.

Application Research: Big Data in Food Industry.

A huge amount of data is being produced in the food industry, but the application of big data-regulatory, food enterprise, and food-related media data-is still in its infancy. Each data source has the potential to develop the food industry, and big data has broad application prospects in areas like social co-governance, exploit of consumption markets, quantitative production, new dishes, take-out services, precise nutrition and health management. However, there are urgent problems in technology, health and sustainable development that need to be solved to enable the application of big data to the food industry.

Research Progress on Phytopathogenic Fungi and Their Role as Biocontrol Agents.

Phytopathogenic fungi decrease crop yield and quality and cause huge losses in agricultural production. To prevent the occurrence of crop diseases and insect pests, farmers have to use many synthetic chemical pesticides. The extensive use of these pesticides has resulted in a series of environmental and ecological problems, such as the increase in resistant weed populations, soil compaction, and water pollution, which seriously affect the sustainable development of agriculture. This review discusses the main advances in research on plant-pathogenic fungi in terms of their pathogenic factors such as cell wall-degrading enzymes, toxins, growth regulators, effector proteins, and fungal viruses, as well as their application as biocontrol agents for plant pests, diseases, and weeds. Finally, further studies on plant-pathogenic fungal resources with better biocontrol effects can help find new beneficial microbial resources that can control diseases.

A review on the production, structure, bioactivities and applications of Tremella polysaccharides.

Tremella polysaccharide is known to be structurally unique and biologically active natural products, abundant and versatile in activities and applications in food industry, daily chemical industry and medicine industry. In order to improve the industrialisation of Tremella polysaccharide, the limitations of preparation and structure-activity relationship of Tremella polysaccharide were reviewed in this paper. The research progress of Tremella polysaccharide in the past 20 years was summarized from the sources, preparation methods, molecular structure, activity and application, and the research trend in the future was also prospected. The application prospect of Tremella polysaccharide in against multiple sub-health states was worth expecting.

The Elabela-APJ axis: a promising therapeutic target for heart failure.

Heart failure (HF) is a growing epidemic with high morbidity and mortality at an international scale. The apelin-APJ receptor pathway has been implicated in HF, making it a promising therapeutic target. APJ has been shown to be activated by a novel endogenous peptide ligand known as Elabela (ELA, also called Toddler or Apela), with a critical role in cardiac development and function. Activation of the ELA-APJ receptor axis exerts a wide range of physiological effects, including depressor response, positive inotropic action, diuresis, anti-inflammatory, anti-fibrotic, and anti-remodeling, leading to its cardiovascular protection. The ELA-APJ axis is essential for diverse biological processes and has been shown to regulate fluid homeostasis, myocardial contractility, vasodilation, angiogenesis, cellular differentiation, apoptosis, oxidative stress, cardiorenal fibrosis, and dysfunction. The beneficial effects of the ELA-APJ receptor system are well-established by treating hypertension, myocardial infarction, and HF. Additionally, administration of ELA protects human embryonic stem cells against apoptosis and stress-induced cell death and promotes survival and self-renewal in an APJ-independent manner (X receptor) via the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/Akt pathway, which may provide a new therapeutic approach for HF. Thus, targeting the ELA-APJ axis has emerged as a pre-warning biomarker and a novel therapeutic approach against progression of HF. An increased understanding of cardiovascular actions of ELA will help to develop effective interventions. This article gives an overview of the characteristics of the ELA-apelin-APJ axis and summarizes the current knowledge on its cardioprotective roles, potential mechanisms, and prospective application for acute and chronic HF.

Cloning of long sterile lemma (lsl2), a single recessive gene that regulates spike germination in rice (Oryza sativa L.).

BACKGROUND: Rice is a typical monocotyledonous plant and an important cereal crop. The structural units of rice flowers are spikelets and florets, and floral organ development and spike germination affect rice reproduction and yield. RESULTS: In this study, we identified a novel long sterile lemma (lsl2) mutant from an EMS population. First, we mapped the lsl2 gene between the markers Indel7-22 and Indel7-27, which encompasses a 25-kb region. The rice genome annotation indicated the presence of four candidate genes in this region. Through gene prediction and cDNA sequencing, we confirmed that the target gene in the lsl2 mutant is allelic to LONG STERILE LEMMA1 (G1)/ELONGATED EMPTY GLUME (ELE), hereafter referred to as lsl2. Further analysis of the lsl2 and LSL2 proteins showed a one-amino-acid change, namely, the mutation of serine (Ser) 79 to proline (Pro) in lsl2 compared with LSL2, and this mutation might change the function of the protein. Knockout experiments showed that the lsl2 gene is responsible for the long sterile lemma phenotype. The lsl2 gene might reduce the damage induced by spike germination by decreasing the seed germination rate, but other agronomic traits of rice were not changed in the lsl2 mutant. Taken together, our results demonstrate that the lsl2 gene will have specific application prospects in future rice breeding. CONCLUSIONS: The lsl2 gene is responsible for the long sterile lemma phenotype and might reduce the damage induced by spike germination by decreasing the seed germination rate.

CRISPR/Cas technology promotes the various application of Dunaliella salina system.

Dunaliella salina (D. salina) has been widely applied in various fields because of its inherent advantages, such as the study of halotolerant mechanism, wastewater treatment, recombinant proteins expression, biofuel production, preparation of natural materials, and others. However, owing to the existence of low yield or in the laboratory exploration stage, D. salina system has been greatly restricted for practical production of various components. In past decade, significant progresses have been achieved for research of D. salina in these fields. Among them, D. salina as a novel expression system demonstrated a bright prospect, especially for large-scale production of foreign proteins, like the vaccines, antibodies, and other therapeutic proteins. Due to the low efficiency, application of traditional regulation tools is also greatly limited for exploration of D. salina system. The emergence of the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/Cas system offers a precise editing tool to overcome the obstacles of D. salina system. This review not only comprehensively summarizes the recent progresses of D. salina in domain of gene engineering but also gives a deep analysis of problems and deficiencies in different fields of D. salina. Moreover, further prospects of CRISPR/Cas system and its significant challenges have been discussed in various aspects of D. salina. It provides a great referencing value for speeding up the maturity of D. salina system, and also supplies practical guiding significance to expand the new application fields for D. salina. KEY POINTS: • The review provides recent research progresses of various applications of D. salina. • The problems and deficiencies in different fields of D. salina were deeply analyzed. • The further prospects of CRISPR/Cas technology in D. salina system were predicted. • CRISPR/Cas system will promote the new application fields and maturity for D. salina.

Recent Developments in Pharmacological Effect, Mechanism and Application Prospect of Diazeniumdiolates.

Nitric oxide (NO) is a simple structured and unstable free radical molecule, which participates in the regulation of many pathophysiological processes. It functions both as a second messenger and as an endogenous neurotransmitter. Diazeniumdiolates (NONOates) are a series of compounds containing the functional parent nuclear structure of [N(O)NO]-, which are the most widely studied NO donors. NONOates are unstable and easy to release NO in physiological conditions. The biomedical applications and drug development of NO donor have attracted the scientists' attention in recent years. In this review, recent advances in NONOates research are highlighted in terms of chemical structures, molecular characteristics, pharmacological effects, and biomedical application prospects.

Research progress on superfine grinding technique in field of Chinese materia medica / 中草药

With the continuous development of the modernization of Chinese materia medica (CMM), the superfine grinding technology has been continuously applied to the basic and applied research of raw materials and preparations, which has become an important way to improve and enhance the quality of traditional Chinese medicine decoction pieces and traditional preparations. This paper introduces the concept, the equipment, working principle and characteristics of superfine grinding, and expounds the general situation of application of superfine grinding technology in Chinese materia medica (CMM). The prospective application of superfine grinding technology in the field of CMM was analyzed and prospected. The problems that should be paid attention to in the future research and application of superfine grinding of CMM were put forward.

Research Status,Problems and Countermeasures of Lyotropic Liquid Crystal in New Drug Delivery Systems of Traditional Chinese Medicine / 中国实验方剂学杂志

Lyotropic liquid crystal is an ordered system with various geometric shapes or three-dimensional structures formed by the interaction of amphiphilic molecules dissolved in polar solvents, and has the characteristics of excellent drug applicability, high drug loading, good bioadhesive property and high transdermal permeability. Through a comprehensive analysis of the research results in this research group and the related research reports of LLC drug delivery system, the authors systematically discussed the research value, development potential and research status of LLC in the field of new drug delivery system of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM), especially in the percutaneous and mucosal drug delivery system and the oral microparticle drug delivery system of TCM. At the same time, due to the current research field of TCM-LLC drug delivery system starts late, many of the basic research problems to be further perfect, this paper had carried on the induction summary to these problems, and put forward the research countermeasures:①the basic research of TCM-LLC drug delivery system should be strengthened by referencing the research experience and methods of LLC drug delivery system of single chemical component combined with TCM characteristics, ②the research on the release mechanism of the chemical components in TCM should be strengthened, and the basic research on the LLC drug delivery system of synchronized sustained release TCM should be carried out, ③development of new LLC materials applicable to TCM, ④the quality evaluation system of TCM-LLC should be improved, ⑤to explore the LLC preparation process suitable for industrialization.

Application of gene editing technology in behavioral medicine and its regulatory policy / 中华行为医学与脑科学杂志

Gene editing technology has a broad development prospect in medical research and appli-cation,and it is a frontier hot spot in the field of biomedical research worldwide,especially in the field of be-havioral medicine,making it possible to treat and prevent major diseases such as brain diseases,neurodegen-erative diseases and behavioral psychology diseases. But we must recognize that gene-editing technology poses new threats to bio-security while benefiting humanity. This paper summarizes the development and application prospect of gene editing technology in the field of behavioral medicine,summarizes the ethical and relevant institu-tional problems and international regulatory policies faced by the rapid development of gene editing technology, and finally puts forward relevant regulatory suggestions for the development of gene editing technology.

Advances in Plants of Polygonatum and Discussion of Its Development Prospects / 中国药学杂志

Polygonati Rhizoma as one of the most common Chinese herbal medicine and food was widely distributed in China. In TCM clinic, it was used for diabetes, hyperlipemia and rehabilitation therapy of cancer. Nowadays, with the rapid development of health industry, Polygonati Rhizoma shows excellent functions on healthcare, and then a surge of demands was coming. But there are so many species belongs to this genus and the classification criteria are not unified, so some important problems become urgently to be resolved, such as how to guarantee the quality and how to keep sustainable development. In this paper, the origin, distribution in China, chemical composition, pharmacological, and clinical application are reviewed. Its prospect is discussed to be helpful to promote the comprehensive development of Polygonatum.

Research Review of Knowledge Graph and Its Application in TCM Field / 中国中医药信息杂志

As the new development of scientometrics and informetrics, knowledge graph has infiltrated into the financial, industrial and medical fields, and become a hot issue in the real world research. In this article, the concept and features of knowledge graph, construction and the existing softwares, the application status and development prospect in the TCM field were reviewed, which may provide references for research on the knowledge graph in the TCM field.

Current Research Status and Application Prospect on Transcription Factor NF-?B / 中国生物工程杂志

NF-?B, a group of important transcription factors, are introduced and discussed here on several aspects: their component and molecular structure; their activity control by I?B and IKK, the mechanism of their activation; their important roles in transcriptional regulation for large numbers of genes; and their importance in immunity, inflammation, cell survival, proliferation and apoptosis. The analysis of the relation between NF-?B and disease occurrence, the analysis of the relation between NF-?B and disease therapy, and the application prospect of the new strategy regarding the novel drug design and correlative diseases therapy on the basis of NF-?B as the target, are also included.