Archives of Physiology and Biochemistry最新文献

Context: Recent findings suggest that Selenium (Se) deficiency in neonates may hinder pulmonary alveolar development, but the underlying molecular mechanisms remain underexplored.

Objective: This study utilised a neonatal mouse model to investigate the effects of dietary Se deficiency on pulmonary alveolar development.

Materials and methods: Techniques such as quantitative PCR, Western blotting, and immunohistochemistry were employed to assess gene and protein expression related to alveolar development and oxidative stress markers. Mitochondrial ROS accumulation was quantified using MitoSOX staining, and the activity of sirtuin 3 (STAT3), a key transcription factor involved in oxidative stress responses, was analysed.

Results: Our findings indicate that Se-deficient neonates exhibit significantly impaired alveolar development characterised by reduced alveolar number and surface area. These structural alterations were associated with increased mitochondrial ROS levels and oxidative stress. Furthermore, Se deficiency resulted in decreased STAT3 phosphorylation, suggesting a mechanism whereby Se influences alveolar development through modulation of STAT3 activity and mitochondrial function.

Discussion and conclusion: Se plays a critical role in neonatal pulmonary development by modulating oxidative stress and mitochondrial dynamics via the STAT3 pathway. The study underscores the potential of Se supplementation as a strategic intervention to promote alveolar maturation and prevent pulmonary disorders in neonates. Further research is recommended to explore the therapeutic thresholds and timing of Se administration to optimize pulmonary outcomes.

Cardiovascular risk prediction identifies individuals at high risk before symptoms arise. To address challenges such as integrating diverse data, ensuring quality, and managing patient variability, the Dense Spiking Forward Fractional Network (DenSFFNet) model is introduced within the Spark framework. The process begins with image acquisition and partitioning using Deep Embedded Clustering (DEC), followed by preprocessing tasks like Greyscale Conversion, Optic Disc (OD) segmentation with Channel Prior Convolutional Attention (CPCA), and blood vessel segmentation using Frangi-Net across slave nodes. Extracted features, including Learned Invariant Feature Transformation (LIFT) and statistical metrics, are aggregated by the master node, which utilises the DenSFFNet model a combination of DenseNet and Deep Spiking Neural Network (DSNN). The DenSFFNet method attained accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, and Matthews correlation coefficient (MCC) is 91.119%, 90.366%, 89.922%, and 92.643% for dataset 1. For the RFMiD 2.0 dataset, the proposed method attained 90.881% accuracy, 90.286% sensitivity, 89.660% specificity, and 91.469% MCC.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is associated with hyperglycaemia and amyloid beta (Aβ) accumulation. In the present study, we investigated whether an aqueous extract of Cuscuta chinensis Lam. (CCWE) improved cognitive disorder in a hyperglycaemic and cognitive-impaired mouse model. Hyperglycaemia was induced by streptozotocin (STZ, 50 mg/kg) and a single intracerebroventricular injection of Aβ_25-35 (25 nM) was performed. The Aβ_25-35-injected hyperglycaemic mice were then administered CCWE (100 or 200 mg/kg/day) for 14-d. The protective effects of the CCWE were evaluated by behavioural tests and western blot analysis. The bioactive compounds in CCWE were isolated by UPLC-QTOF/MS analysis. The administration of CCWE improved the learning and memory function in STZ/Aβ_25-35-injected mice. Moreover, CCWE positively regulated the amyloidogenic pathway-related proteins and insulin signalling-related proteins. The bioactive components in CCWE were also identified. These findings suggest the possibility of CCWE as a potential candidate for the dual-targeting treatment of hyperglycaemia and AD.

Introduction: Among the dietary factors, glucose, and fatty acids are known to trigger fatty liver disease, while butyrate attenuates steatosis.

Objective: To decipher the hepatocellular altered metabolome under nutrient perturbation relevant to fatty liver disease.

Methods: HepG2 cells were cultured under the influence of sub-lethal doses of glucose, palmitic acid (PA), and butyrate. Following the treatment, intracellular metabolites were extracted and derivatized for GCMS analysis. Chemical class enrichment, metabolic pathway analysis, and metabolomic interactome analysis were undertaken.

Results: Glucose, PA and butyrate caused loss of cell viability at 160 mM, 1600 µM, and 40 mM concentration, respectively. A total of 39, 47, 52, and 51 metabolites were identified in control, glucose, PA, and butyrate, respectively, among which 2-ethylhexanoic acid in control and 2-ethylhexan-1-ol in glucose, PA and butyrate were the most abundant metabolites. Pathways related to the mitochondrial electron transport chain were highly enriched in glucose and PA treatments, leading to increased free radicals. The metabolites identified under glucose and PA treatment were linked to the metabolomic markers of metabolic liver diseases.

Conclusion: Our data showed that the hepatocellular metabolome of HepG2 cells under glucose and PA treatment is closely related, while the metabolome and pathways associated with butyrate treatment are associated with energy metabolism and alleviation of fatty liver.

Background: This study was conducted to assess the hepatoprotective potential of Annona muricata flower (AMF) using albino rats' model.

Materials and methods: Liver function assays such as alkaline phosphatase (ALP), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), total bilirubin (TBILI), antioxidants, haematology (HGB), histology, inhibition of transforming growth factor beta receptor I (TGFβR1) and antibacterial assays were investigated.

Results and discussion: Induction with acetaminophen gave rise to a significant increase (p < 0.05) in serum of liver enzymes of ALT, AST, ALP and TBILI in the acetaminophen (APAP) only group, which indicates hepatocellular injury, whereas AMF attenuated liver enzymes level. The histological assessment confirmed that AMF possesses blood-enhancing ability. AMF significantly showed inhibition of TGFβR1. AMF was active against all the tested bacteria with high zones of inhibition.

Conclusion: This study provides information on the uses of AMF as a natural product for hepatoprotection and other therapeutic purposes.

Background: Behçet Disease (BD) is a chronic multi-systemic vasculitis of relapsing and remitting nature. Many recent studies have denoted the role of micro RNAs (MiRNAs) in the pathogenesis of BD.

Subjects and methods: Blood samples were withdrawn from 50 BD patients and 40 age and sex-matched healthy individuals in this study.

Results: Serum expression levels of miR-34a and miR-182 were significantly elevated in BD patients when compared to controls, p < .001. However, serum expression levels of miR-378 were significantly decreased in BD patients compared to controls, p < .001. miR-182 serum levels were also found to be elevated in active BD patients compared to patients in inactive state (p = .022). We found a significant association between miR-34 levels and joint affection in BD patients as well as a significant relation between miR-182 levels and each of neurological manifestations and genital ulcerations. In addition, a statistically significant positive correlations were proved in the current results between miR-182 expression and BDCAF score (r = 0.419, p = .002) as well as severity score (r = 0.358, p = .011).

Conclusion: Our study denoted that the three miRNAs; miR-34a, miR-182, and miR-378 possibly play a crucial role in the pathogenesis of BD. The distinction of their serum levels between patients and healthy individuals suggested their potentiality as promising biomarkers for BD.

The consumption of açaí has been shown to be beneficial to health. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of juçara açai (JU, Euterpe edulis Martius) administration before gestation on the biometric, metabolic, and oxidative status in pregnant rats of advanced maternal age. Healthy female Wistar rats were treated with JU pulp via gavage from postnatal day 168 to 210. After treatment, the rats were mated, and during the 20 days of pregnancy, they were evaluated for body weight (BW), glucose tolerance, adipose tissue and liver weight, the lipid profile, and hepatic oxidative status. At birth, the offspring were weighed and counted. It was observed that JU reduced just maternal glycaemia. The maternal preconceptional treatment did not affect offspring BW. These results suggest that JU could be a safe nutritional intervention during the preconception period in advanced maternal age.

Introduction: Heptaminol (HEP) is widely used and characterized by liver and cardiac risk factors, dysregulated prooxidant-antioxidant balance, and inflammation. This study aimed to study the phytochemical composition of date seeds of Phoenix dactylifera (DSPE) by GC-MS analysis and to assess the in vitro antioxidant, anticoagulant and ACE activities.

Methods: The hepato and cardiotoprotective effect against HEP-induced toxicity in rats have been assessed using biochemical, histological and computational assays.

Results: HEP increased the body weight, associated significant increases in total cholesterol, triglycerides, total and direct bilirubin, alkaline phosphatase, creatinine kinase-MB, ACE, and troponin-T, exhibited changes in ECG pattern, including ST-segment elevation, and increased rate of TBARS with decreases in the antioxidant enzymatic. DSPE improved these biomarkers alterations through anti-oxidative and anti-coagulant activities, which were confirmed by histopathological examinations. The computational findings supported the in vivo results and showed that DSPE compounds bound Hypoxia-Inducible Factor (HIF-1α) and Insulin-Like Growth Factor (IGF1) with acceptable affinities and molecular interactions.

Conclusion: DSPE had hepato and cardioprotective effects against HEP-induced heart and liver injuries. DSPE can be used to prevent acute thrombosis due to its different bioactive compounds.

Traditional cancer diagnosis methods include imaging examinations, biopsy, etc., but these methods are often invasive, time-consuming, and costly. This study aims to explore the application effect of infra-red thermography technology in cancer diagnosis and analyse the coping experience of primary caregivers during patient diagnosis and treatment. The data collection methods include semi-structured interviews, observations, and questionnaire surveys. The research results show that infra-red thermography technology has high sensitivity and specificity in cancer diagnosis, which can assist doctors in detecting early signs of tumours. Therefore, cancer diagnosis technology based on infra-red thermography has shown great potential in early detection and is expected to become a beneficial supplement to traditional diagnostic methods. At the same time, caregivers' coping experiences during cancer diagnosis and treatment are complex and diverse, requiring the healthcare system to provide more support and resources to help them better adapt and cope.

Background: The cardioprotective properties of resistance training (RT) in infarcted rats have been poorly investigated. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of eight weeks of RT prior myocardial infarction (MI) in rats. Method: Groups: SSh: sedentary sham surgery; SMI: sedentary MI; TMI: trained MI. At the end of the eighth week, the animals underwent either MI or sham surgery and were analysed four weeks later. Results: The TMI presented MI sizes, scar areas, masses of the atria, right ventricle, heart, left atrial area, E wave, and E/A ratio, smaller than the SMI. The protein expression related to Ca²⁺ handling were not affected by the RE. The maximal load (ML) of the TMI was greater than that of the SMI group. The VO₂ peak and maximum speed (Vmax) were lower in the infarcted groups. Conclusion: Prior RT confers cardioprotection against cardiac remodelling by attenuating infarct size progression, myocardial hypertrophy, and diastolic dysfunction.