The Use of Oseltamivir as Adjunctive Therapy for the Treatment of Hand-Food-and-Mouth Disease: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials

Background: Hand-foot-and-mouth disease (HFMD) is a common childhood illness caused by enteroviruses. Oseltamivir (OS), a neuraminidase inhibitor, has been frequently used as an adjunctive therapy for the treatment of HFMD. Solid evidence, however, is lacking regarding the efficacy of such adjunctive therapy. This work is to conduct a meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials (RCTs) to assess the efficacy of oseltamivir for HFMD in children. Methods: Eligible studies from inception to October 10, 2020 were identified by searching six databases (PubMed, Embase, CENTRAL, CNKI, Wanfang, and VIP database). Quality of evidence was assessed using the Cochrane Collaboration tool. Results: Of a total of 91 entries, 11 RCTs involving 977 HFMD children were included in the final analysis. The results showed that the therapy combined with oseltamivir was more effective, with higher effective rate (RR, 0.84; 95% CI, 0.80 to 0.87; p < 0.01), shorter fever clearance time (days) (SMD, -0.74; 95% CI, -1.12 to -0.35; p < 0.01), shorter rash regression time (days) (MD, -0.89; 95% CI, -1.05 to -0.72; p < 0.01) and shorter clinical cure time (SMD, -1.08; 95% CI, -1.55 to -0.61; p < 0.01). No significant difference was observed in the risk of adverse reactions between the groups with and without oseltamivir. Conclusion: The use of oseltamivir as adjunctive therapy shows effectiveness and no increased risk of adverse reactions for the treatment of HFMD in children.

Omics and Transgenic Analyses Reveal that Salvianolic Acid B Exhibits its Anti-Inflammatory Effects through Inhibiting the Mincle-Syk-Related Pathway in Macrophages

Salvianolic acid B (Sal B), the main water-soluble compound in Salvia miltiorrhiza, is known to exhibit anti-inflammatory activity, however, the underlying mechanism(s) is not completely uncovered. In this study, Sal B inhibited lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced M1 activation and promoted the transformation of macrophages from M1- to M2-type polarization. The altered lipid profiles of LPS-induced RAW 264.7 macrophages were partly restored by Sal B treatment. At the proteomic level, a total of 5612 proteins were identified and 432 were significantly changed in macrophages under LPS treatment. The differential proteins were classified into four clusters according to their expression level in blank, LPS, and Sal B groups. LPS-induced proteins in Cluster IV including Kif14, Mincle, and Sec62 were significantly recovered to almost normal levels by Sal B treatment. Use of knockdown Mincle or picetannol (inhibitor of Syk) led to significant reductions in the gene expressions of IL-1β, iNOS, and IL-12 and the release of NO. The converse was, however, observed for overexpressed Mincle. In addition, LPS- or trehalose-6,6-dibehenate-induced phosphorylation of Syk and PKCδ was decreased by Sal B treatment. These results suggest that Sal B inhibition of LPS-induced inflammation might be through inhibition of the Mincle-Syk-PKCδ signaling pathway.

Jatrorrhizine: a review of its pharmacological effects

OBJECTIVES

Jatrorrhizine is an isoquinoline alkaloid found in medicinal plants. It is the main bioactive compound of the Chinese herbs, Coptis chinensis, Rhizoma coptidis, and Phellodendron chinense Schneid, plants that are predominantly used in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) for the treatment of metabolic disorders, gastritis, stomachache among a host of others. This manuscript aims to provide a comprehensive review of the pharmacological effects of jatrorrhizine, proffer suggestions on research areas that need redress and potentially serve as a reference for future studies.

KEY FINDINGS

Published scientific literature was therefore retrieved from all credible sources including Pubmed, Elsevier, Research Gate, Web of Science, Google Scholar, Science Direct, Europe PMC and Wiley Online library using key words such as 'jatrorrhizine', 'botanical sources', 'pharmacology', 'toxicology', 'pharmacokinetics' or their combinations. A cursory examination of relevant scientific literature using the aforementioned key words produced more than 400 publications.

CONCLUSIONS

Using an inclusion/exclusion criteria the subject matter of this review was adequately addressed. It is our hope that this review will provide a good platform for further research on fully harnessing the potential of this bioactive compound.

Antithrombotic and anticoagulant effects of a novel protein isolated from the venom of the Deinagkistrodon acutus snake

The venom of the Deinagkistrodon acutus snake is composed of numerous bioactive proteins and peptides. In this study, we report the antithrombotic and anticoagulant activities of one of such proteins, herein known as SLPC. This novel protein was isolated and purified via multi-gel chromatography. Its amino acid sequence, structure and function were then determined. This protein was found to exhibit defibration, anticoagulation and general antithrombotic effects based on the results of both in vitro and in vivo studies. Based on same studies, it was found to cleave the α, β, γ chains of fibrinogen and generally improved antiplatelet aggregation and blood rheology. A metabolomic insight of the antithrombotic effects of SLPC was found to be mainly linked to perturbations in the synthesis of unsaturated fatty acids, glycerophospholipid metabolism, arachidonic acid metabolism and other metabolic pathways. In summary, the novel protein SLPC, elicits its antithrombotic effects via degradation of fibrinogen and regulation of various thrombogenic factors in multiple metabolic pathways.

Advanced paternal age and risk of cancer in offspring

Many risk factors of cancer have been established, but the contribution of paternal age in this regard remains largely unexplored. To further understand the etiology of cancer, we investigated the relationship between paternal age and cancer incidence using PLCO cohort. Cox proportional hazards models were performed to assess the association between paternal age and the risk of cancers. During follow-up time (median 11.5 years), 18,753 primary cancers occurred. Paternal age was associated with reduced risk of cancers of the female genitalia (HR, 0.79; 95%CI, 0.66-0.94; P = 0.008) as well as cancers of the respiratory and intrathoracic organs (HR, 0.78; 95%CI, 0.63-0.97; P = 0.026). The association was stronger for lung cancer (HR, 0.67; 95%CI, 0.52-0.86; P = 0.002). The subgroup analysis suggested that age, gender, smoking and BMI were related to the decreased cancer incidence of the respiratory and intrathoracic organs, lung and the female genitalia. Positive linear associations were observed between paternal age and cancer incidence of the female genitalia, respiratory and intrathoracic organs and the lungs. These findings indicate that advanced paternal age is an independent protective factor against various cancers in offspring.

Metabolomic and transcriptomic analyses of the anti-rheumatoid arthritis potential of xylopic acid in a bioinspired lipoprotein nanoformulation

Xylopic acid (XA), a diterpene kaurene and the major active ingredient of the African spice Xylopia aethiopica (Annonaceae), is reported to possess anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties. Here, we investigated the therapeutic potential of XA for rheumatoid arthritis (RA), a debilitating autoimmune inflammatory disease characterized by joint damage, in the complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA)-induced arthritis model in rats. We synthesized bioinspired reconstituted high-density lipoprotein (rHDL) nanoparticles loaded with purified XA crystals (rHDL/XA) that passively accumulate in inflamed joints of CFA-induced arthritic rats. Treatment with rHDL/XA minimized mononuclear cell infiltration of CFA-induced arthritic sites and ameliorated disease burden. Metabolomic and transcriptomic analyses revealed that the major molecular pathways perturbed following CFA-induced arthritis correlated with amino acid and lipid metabolism, which were restored to normal states by rHDL/XA treatment. This work demonstrates the anti-RA potential of XA in a nanoformulation and uncovers its underlying therapeutic mechanisms at the transcript and metabolite levels.

Sonication, osmosonication and vacuum-assisted osmosonication pretreatment of Ghanaian garlic slices: Effect on physicochemical properties and quality characteristics

This work aimed to assess the impact of sonication (US), osmosonication (US + OD) and vacuum-assisted osmosonication (V + US + OD) pretreatments on the quality of Ghanaian garlic prior to relative humidity convective drying. Hence, slices of fresh garlic subjected to US, US + OD and V + US + OD pretreatments were dried and the following assessed: antioxidant activities, total phenolic content (TPC), total flavonoid content (TFC), polyphenol oxidase (PPO) enzyme inactivation, rehydration ratio (RR), drying kinetics, energy consumption, chromatographic fingerprinting, allicin content and Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy. V + US + OD pretreatment gave the best results for antioxidant activities, TPC, TFC, RR and PPO enzyme inactivation. It also recorded the shortest drying time and was more energy efficient. Finally V + US + OD pretreatment maintained the chemical integrity of the finished product and recorded the highest content of allicin. A general trend was however observed for all quality parameters assessed for the various pretreatment methods as: V + US + OD > US + OD > US.

Integrative omic and transgenic analyses reveal the positive effect of ultraviolet-B irradiation on salvianolic acid biosynthesis through upregulation of SmNAC1

Salvianolic acids (SalAs), a group of secondary metabolites in Salvia miltiorrhiza, are widely used for treating cerebrovascular diseases. Their biosynthesis is modulated by a variety of abiotic factors, including ultraviolet-B (UV-B) irradiation; however, the underlying mechanisms remain largely unknown. Here, an integrated metabolomic, proteomic, and transcriptomic approach coupled with transgenic analyses was employed to dissect the mechanisms underlying UV-B irradiation-induced SalA biosynthesis. Results of metabolomics showed that 28 metabolites, including 12 SalAs, were elevated in leaves of UV-B-treated S. miltiorrhiza. Meanwhile, the contents of several phytohormones, including jasmonic acid and salicylic acid, which positively modulate the biosynthesis of SalAs, also increased in UV-B-treated S. miltiorrhiza. Consistently, 20 core biosynthetic enzymes and numerous transcription factors that are involved in SalA biosynthesis were elevated in treated samples as indicated by a comprehensive proteomic analysis. Correlation and gene expression analyses demonstrated that the NAC1 gene, encoding a NAC transcriptional factor, was positively involved in UV-B-induced SalA biosynthesis. Accordingly, overexpression and RNA interference of NAC1 increased and decreased SalA contents, respectively, through regulation of key biosynthetic enzymes. Furthermore, ChIP-qPCR and Dual-LUC assays showed that NAC1 could directly bind to the CATGTG and CATGTC motifs present in the promoters of the SalA biosynthesis-related genes PAL3 and TAT3, respectively, and activate their expression. Our results collectively demonstrate that NAC1 plays a crucial role in UV-B irradiation-induced SalA biosynthesis. Taken together, our findings provide mechanistic insights into the UV-B-induced SalA biosynthesis in S. miltiorrhiza, and shed light on a great potential for the development of SalA-abundant varieties through genetic engineering.

Variation in bioactive phytochemicals and sensory attributes of osmosonic convective dried ginger from four African countries

BACKGROUND

The rhizome of ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe) is one of the most patronized spices worldwide and plays an important role in folklore medicine. In this study, we aimed to determine the quality of ginger samples from representative West African (Ghana, Nigeria) and East African (Uganda, Kenya) countries. By that, we also implicitly sought to determine the probable influence of location of cultivation (and the intrinsic growth conditions) on the quality of the samples. The ginger samples were pretreated by osmosonication prior to relative humidity convective drying and analyzed for differences in their metabolomes, total phenolic content (TPC) and total flavonoid content (TFC), antioxidant activities, sensory characteristics and volatile compounds composition (via electronic-nose determination).

RESULTS

The outcome of our study showed marked source-dependent differences in the metabolomes of the samples as captured by a metabolomics approach. Based on the findings of the metabolomics study, 6-gingerol content was quantified and found to be higher in the samples of West African origin. Also, the samples from the two West African countries contained higher levels of bioactive phytochemicals as evinced by the results of TPC, TFC, e-nose analysis, and antioxidant activities. They also gave better sensory attributes.

CONCLUSION

In summary, for all parameters assessed, and on a country-by-country basis, the general quality trend observed was: Ghana > Nigeria > Uganda > Kenya. All results taken together, our findings at least in part, point to the influence of geographical regions of cultivation on the quality of the ginger rhizomes. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry.

Application of non-thermal pretreatment techniques on agricultural products prior to drying: a review

BACKGROUND

Most agricultural crops contain high moisture content (80-95% wet basis (wb)) which makes them very susceptible to microbial damage leading to shorter shelf-life and high postharvest losses. The high perishability of these agricultural products requires preservation techniques to prolong their shelf-lives. Drying remains an important component of processing in this regard. Therefore, any pretreatment methods for drying agricultural product that decreases the moisture content and minimizes drying time by conserving the quality of the crop product is of prime significance. This article is a comprehensive review of recent developments of non-thermal pretreatment (NTP) methods. A summary of their significance, emerging and innovative methods of this technology together with its applications and limitations are discussed. This article further examines the environmental impact of NTP techniques.

RESULTS

NTP techniques, such as high pressure, ultrasound, pulsed electric field and osmotic dehydration methods are essential operations for pre-dehydration of agricultural products prior to drying. These techniques can avoid the deleterious effects of heat on nutritive value, colour and flavour of agricultural products compared to thermal pretreatments. They also enhance the inactivation of the enzymes, improve energy efficiency and mass transfer, reduce processing time, preserve bioactive compounds, improve drying kinetics and drying rate, minimize enzymatic browning, and enhance product quality.

CONCLUSION

These findings will provide a better understanding of different NTP methods and also make available more information for selecting pretreatment techniques for drying of agricultural products. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry.

Melatonin as an inducer of arecoline and their coordinated roles in anti-oxidative activity and immune responses

Melatonin and it induced arecoline in arecoline play coordinated roles in immune responses.

Cerebrospinal fluid-based metabolomics to characterize different types of brain tumors

BACKGROUND

Brain tumors cause significant morbidity and mortality due to rapid progression and high recurrence risks. Reliable biomarkers to improve diagnosis thereof are desirable.

OBJECTIVE

This work aimed to identify panels of biomarkers for diagnostic purposes using cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)-based metabolomics.

METHODS

A cohort of 163 histologically-proven patients with brain disorders was involved. Comprehensive CSF-based metabolomics was achieved by liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight spectrometric (LC-Q/TOF-MS) and multivariate statistical analyses. The diagnostic performance of the metabolic markers was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic curves.

RESULTS

A total of 508 ion features were detected by the LC-Q/TOF-MS analysis, of which 27 metabolites were selected as diagnostic markers to discriminate different brain tumor types. The area under the curve (AUC) was 0.91 for lung adenocarcinoma patients with brain metastases (MBT) vs. lung adenocarcinoma patients without brain metastases (NMBT), 0.83 for primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL) vs. secondary central nervous system involvement of systemic lymphoma (SCNSL), 0.77 for PCNSL vs. MBT, 0.87 for SCNSL vs. MBT, 0.86 for MBT vs. nontumorous brain diseases (NT), and 0.80 for PCNSL vs. NT. Perturbed metabolic pathways between the comparisons related mainly to amino acids and citrate metabolism.

CONCLUSIONS

CSF-based metabolomics to a large extent reliably identifies significant metabolic differences between different brain tumors and shows great potential for diagnosis of brain tumors.

Effects of Various Nonthermal Pretreatments on the Physicochemical Properties of Dried Ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe) Slices from Two Geographical Locations

This study explored the effect of different nonthermal pretreatments, osmosonication (OS), osmotic dehydration, and ultrasound methods on the physical and chemical properties of China- and Ghana-sourced ginger samples under relative humidity convective drying. The chemical properties of pretreated dried ginger slices were assessed for antioxidant properties (ABTS and DPPH); total phenolic content; total flavonoids content; and 4-, 6-, 8-, and 10-gingerol and 6-shogaol levels. The physical properties compared were weight loss, rehydration ratio (RR), texture, and drying kinetics. Results revealed that OS pretreatment led to a higher preservation of the chemical properties with the Ghana-sourced ginger exhibiting the highest values. The OS-treated samples obtained the highest weight losses and RRs, but the RR was higher in the Chinese ginger. OS pretreatment also gave the lowest textural value with the China-sourced samples exhibiting the lowest firmness. Weibull model best fitted the experimental results (R2 > 0.99). PRACTICAL APPLICATION: Ginger remains among the most notable medicinal spices worldwide. It is used as a raw material for the pharmaceutical, beverage, cosmetics, and the food industries. Long-term storage of ginger is one of paramount importance, hence any pretreatment that reduces its moisture content and lessens its drying time but preserves its quality is ideal. In this study, we report the effect of different nonthermal pretreatments, osmosonication, osmotic dehydration, and ultrasound on the physical and chemical properties of China- and Ghana-sourced ginger samples under relative humidity convective drying. The present findings will offer more information in the selection of the best pretreatment technique for drying ginger.

Trans-omics biomarker model improves prognostic prediction accuracy for early-stage lung adenocarcinoma

Limited studies have focused on developing prognostic models with trans-omics biomarkers for early-stage lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD). We performed integrative analysis of clinical information, DNA methylation, and gene expression data using 825 early-stage LUAD patients from 5 cohorts. Ranger algorithm was used to screen prognosis-associated biomarkers, which were confirmed with a validation phase. Clinical and biomarker information was fused using an iCluster plus algorithm, which significantly distinguished patients into high- and low-mortality risk groups (Pdiscovery = 0.01 and Pvalidation = 2.71×10-3). Further, potential functional DNA methylation-gene expression-overall survival pathways were evaluated by causal mediation analysis. The effect of DNA methylation level on LUAD survival was significantly mediated through gene expression level. By adding DNA methylation and gene expression biomarkers to a model of only clinical data, the AUCs of the trans-omics model improved by 18.3% (to 87.2%) and 16.4% (to 85.3%) in discovery and validation phases, respectively. Further, concordance index of the nomogram was 0.81 and 0.77 in discovery and validation phases, respectively. Based on systematic review of published literatures, our model was superior to all existing models for early-stage LUAD. In summary, our trans-omics model may help physicians accurately identify patients with high mortality risk.

GC-MS-based metabolomics, antibacterial and anti-inflammatory investigations to characterize the quality of essential oil obtained from dried Xylopia aethiopica fruits from Ghana and Nigeria

Objectives

This study sought to determine the quality of essential oil from Xylopia aethiopica fruits of different geographical origins using GC-MS-based metabolomics, bacterial quorum sensing and anti-inflammation assessment.

Methods

Essential oil was obtained from eight batches of X. aethiopica fruits from Ghana and Nigeria by hydrodistillation, characterized using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry and differences therein found using metabolomics. The respective antibacterial activity of the oils was tested against four bacterial strains: two Gram-positive strains, Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 25923) and Bacillus licheniformis (ATCC12759), and two Gram-negative strains, Escherichia coli (ATCC25922) and Klebsiella pneumoniae (ATCC 13883). Anti-inflammation was tested using RAW 264.7 macrophage cells.

Key findings

The outcome of the study revealed that the oil of the Ghana-sourced samples exhibited superior antibacterial, cytotoxic and anti-inflammatory effects than those from Nigeria. This could be attributed to the higher levels of the bioactive compounds present in those samples. This distinction between the samples from the two countries was clearly established using the metabolomics approach, and 14 differential metabolites were found to be potential chemical markers.

Conclusions

The study lends credence to the traditional uses of the essential oil of X. aethiopica as an antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory agent.

A novel ferulic acid derivative attenuates myocardial cell hypoxia reoxygenation injury through a succinate dehydrogenase dependent antioxidant mechanism

The molecular structure optimization aimed at definite target is expected to improve its anti-myocardial ischemia reperfusion (I/R) injury. Ferulic acid derivatives could probably attenuate myocardial I/R injury when optimized on account of definite target succinate dehydrogenase (SDH). Herein, an original compound hmy-paa (3-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-N-(1H-pyrazol-3-yl)acrylamide), a combination of ferulic acid and active groups of enzyme inhibitor was synthesized, myocardial cell hypoxia reoxygenation (H/R) model were built, and SDH activity of myocardial cell was detected to investigate the effect of the derivative. Intriguingly, it could selectively inhibit SDH activity, and efficiently abate myocardial cell H/R injury. SDH is located in the mitochondrial inner membrane, and fluorescent hmy-paa could be observed to accumulate in cell and mitochondria through fluorescence inversion microscopy, which allows for more efficient SDH inhibition efficacy. By inhibiting SDH activity, hmy-paa could reduce oxidative damage by preventing excess production of intracellular reactive oxygen species as well as ensure energy production through the regulation of ATP level. The computational docking simulation exhibits a tightly bound mode between hmy-paa and SDH. Consequently, ferulic acid derivative hmy-paa is a new candidate for the treatment of myocardial H/R injury that exerts its therapeutic effect through a SDH dependent antioxidant mechanism. SDH could probably be a new target for drug discovery to alleviate myocardial I/R injury.

Xylopia aethiopica Seeds from Two Countries in West Africa Exhibit Differences in Their Proteomes, Mineral Content and Bioactive Phytochemical Composition

Aside from its multiple medicinal uses, the fruit of Xylopia aethiopica is widely used in Africa as food. Herein, we characterize the protein profiles, mineral content and bioactive phytochemical composition of the seeds of this plant sourced in Ghana and Nigeria. Using label-free proteomics, a total of 677 proteins were identified, with 260 found in the Ghana-sourced samples while 608 proteins were detected in the samples from Nigeria. However, 114 proteins were common between the samples from the two countries, among which 48 were significantly changed. Bioinformatics and functional analyses revealed that the differential levels of the proteins were mainly linked to pathways involved amino acids metabolism and biosynthesis. The significantly changed proteins related mainly to catalytic activity and carbon metabolism. The samples from Nigeria also exhibited superior qualities in terms of their antioxidant effects, and total phenolic and flavonoid content. Finally, only the content of Na varied to a statistically significant level. This study lends support to its culinary use and hints towards the impact of location of cultivation on the quality of the seeds. There is however need for further mechanistic investigations to unravel the underlying reasons for the observed differences.

Serum-plasma matched metabolomics for comprehensive characterization of benign thyroid nodule and papillary thyroid carcinoma

Metabolomics offers a noninvasive methodology to identify metabolic markers for pathogenesis and diagnosis of diseases. This work aimed to characterize circulating metabolic signatures of benign thyroid nodule (BTN) and papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) via serum-plasma matched metabolomics. A cohort of 1,540 serum-plasma matched samples and 114 tissues were obtained from healthy volunteers, BTN and PTC patients enrolled from 6 independent centers. Untargeted metabolomics was determined by liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometric and multivariate statistical analyses. The use of serum-plasma matched samples afforded a broad-scope detection of 1,570 metabolic features. Metabolic phenotypes revealed significant pattern differences for healthy versus BTN and healthy versus PTC. Perturbed metabolic pathways related mainly to amino acid and lipid metabolism. It is worth noting that, BTN and PTC showed no significant differences but rather overlap in circulating metabolic signatures, and this observation was replicated in all study centers. For differential diagnosis of healthy versus thyroid nodules (BTN + PTC), a panel of 6 metabolic markers, namely myo-inositol, α-N-phenylacetyl-L-glutamine, proline betaine, L-glutamic acid, LysoPC(18:0) and LysoPC(18:1) provided area under the curve of 97.68% in the discovery phase and predictive accuracies of 84.78-98.18% in the 4 validation centers. Taken together, serum-plasma matched metabolomics showed significant differences in circulating metabolites for healthy versus nodules but not for BTN versus PTC. Our results highlight the true metabolic nature of thyroid nodules, and potentially decrease overtreatment that exposes patients to unnecessary risks.

Untargeted UPLC-Q/TOF-MS-based metabolomics and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopic analysis reveal differences in the quality of ginger from two provinces in Zambia

OBJECTIVES

This study sought to investigate the differences in the quality of dried ginger samples obtained from two places in Zambia, Lusaka and Copperbelt in terms of their secondary metabolite differences and heavy metals content.

METHODS

Ten and eight batches of dried ginger obtained, respectively, from Lusaka and Copperbelt were analysed using untargeted Q/TOF-MS-based metabolomics and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES).

KEY FINDINGS

The metabolomics approach yielded 11 differential metabolites that clearly discriminated between the samples from the two locations. Eight were found to be more abundant in the samples from Lusaka while three were present in greater amounts in the samples from Copperbelt. The results of the heavy metal content analysis for four selected elements, Cd, Pb, As and Cu, showed that the samples from Copperbelt recorded higher levels. However, all samples contained levels of the toxic metals, Cd and Pb above permissible limits, making them unwholesome for human consumption.

CONCLUSIONS

The outcome of the heavy metal content analysis led us to speculate that abiotic stress as a result of these metals experienced by the ginger rhizomes during cultivation could have contributed to the metabolites abundance differences. Further studies are, however, recommended to verify this hypothesis.

The new plant Parinari kerstingii Engl.: Toxicity studies and anti-inflammatory properties

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

Parinari kerstingii Engl. extract is traditionally used for the treatment of inflammation, bronchopneumonia, feverish pains, and breast cancer. However, there have not been any scientific reports regarding the medicinal properties of this plant, and no experiments have been done to ascertain the safety of the extract.

AIM OF THE STUDY

The objective of this work was to evaluate the toxicity of Parinari kerstingii Engl. extracts as an herbal remedy and to investigate its anti-inflammatory potential in vivo.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Sprague-Dawley albino male rats were used in these experiments. 100, 300 and 600 mg/kg of body weight doses of Parinari kerstingii Engl. water extract (PKWE) were used for a 14 day toxicity study. For the anti-inflammatory studies, the carrageenan-induced paw edema model was used to investigate the effect of four fractions of Parinari kerstingii Engl. ethanol extract [petroleum ether (fraction A), ethyl acetate (fraction B), n -butanol (fraction C) and water (fraction D)] on the paw size of rats and to investigate the inhibitory effects of Parinari kerstingii Engl. water (PKWE) and Parinari kerstingii Engl. ethanol extract (PKEE).

RESULTS

The administration of 100 mg/kg and 300 mg/kg of body weight doses of Parinari kerstingii Engl. water extract showed no sign of toxicity. However, the 600 mg/kg of body weight dose showed a very significant increase in creatinine concentration. All the fractions of Parinari kerstingii Engl. extract demonstrated anti-inflammatory effects, as shown by a significant reduction in carrageenan-induced paw edema and by a significant decrease in the production of IL-1, TNF-α, COX-2, NF-кB, and PGE_2. Moreover, fraction A and B showed enhanced in vivo anti-inflammatory effects compared to aspirin. Furthermore, PKEE was demonstrated to be more effective than PKWE.

CONCLUSION

We present the first report on the plant Parinari kerstingii Engl. Based on our findings, PKWE at a dose of up to 300 mg/kg of body weight for 14 days is considered safe, and our anti-inflammatory results support its traditional use. Overall, Parinari kerstingii Engl. has been demonstrated to be a potential drug candidate. Thus, further experiments, such as isolation/structural elucidation of the phytochemicals and biological screening of this plant, need to be done.

Label-free proteomic analysis to characterize ginger from China and Ghana

Ginger is a popular spice used in food and beverages. In this study, we sought to characterize and differentiate ginger samples of Ghana and China origin using label-free proteomic and untargeted metabolomic analyses. As result, a total of 180 proteins significantly changed between the ginger samples from both studied countries. Among them, 17 proteins were specifically identified in the Chinese ginger, while 23 proteins were only identified in the Ghanaian ginger. Function and bioinformatics analyses indicated that changes in carbon metabolism, secondary metabolites biosyntheses, citrate acid cycle, and amino acids biosyntheses-related pathways contributed to the differences. These results were confirmed through the identification of 14 significantly changed metabolites including diarylheptanoids and gingerols. Importantly, change tendencies of these metabolites corresponded to changes in abundance of the protein enzymes involved in their syntheses. These results suggest that changes in metabolism-related protein enzymes are responsible for the intraspecies difference of the ginger samples.

A comparative proteomic characterization and nutritional assessment of naturally- and artificially-cultivated Cordyceps sinensis

Cordyceps sinensis has gained increasing attention due to its nutritional and medicinal properties. Herein, we employed label-free quantitative mass spectrometry to explore the proteome differences between naturally- and artificially-cultivated C. sinensis. A total of 22,829 peptides with confidence ≥95%, corresponding to 2541 protein groups were identified from the caterpillar bodies/stromata of 12 naturally- and artificially-cultivated samples of C. sinensis. Among them, 165 proteins showed significant differences between the samples of natural and artificial cultivation. These proteins were mainly involved in energy production/conversion, amino acid transport/metabolism, and transcription regulation. The proteomic results were confirmed by the identification of 4 significantly changed metabolites, thus, lysine, threonine, serine, and arginine via untargeted metabolomics. The change tendencies of these metabolites were partly in accordance with changes in abundance of the proteins, which was upstream of their synthetic pathways. In addition, the nutritional value in terms of the levels of nucleosides, nucleotides, and adenosine between the artificially- and naturally-cultivated samples was virtually same. These proteomic data will be useful for understanding the medicinal value of C. sinensis and serve as reference for its artificial cultivation.

SIGNIFICANCE

C. sinensis is a precious and valued medicinal product, the current basic proteome dataset would provide useful information to understand its development/infection processes as well as help to artificially cultivate it. This work would also provide basic proteome profile for further study of C. sinensis.

A comparative UPLC-Q/TOF-MS-based metabolomics approach for distinguishing Zingiber officinale Roscoe of two geographical origins

Ginger, the rhizome of Zingiber officinale Roscoe, is a popular spice used in the food, beverage and confectionary industries. In this study, we report an untargeted UPLC-Q/TOF-MS-based metabolomics approach for comprehensively discriminating between ginger from two geographical locations, Ghana in West Africa and China. Forty batches of fresh ginger from both countries were discriminated using principal component analysis and orthogonal partial least squares discrimination analysis. Sixteen differential metabolites were identified between the gingers from the two geographical locations, six of which were identified as the marker compounds responsible for the discrimination. Our study highlights the essence and predictive power of metabolomics in detecting minute differences in same varieties of plants/plant samples based on the levels and composition of their metabolites.

Functional Metabolomics Characterizes a Key Role for N-Acetylneuraminic Acid in Coronary Artery Diseases

BACKGROUND

As new biomarkers of coronary artery diseases (CAD) emerge via metabolomics, the underlying functional mechanisms remain to be elucidated. Functional metabolomics aims to translate metabolomics-derived biomarkers to disease mechanisms.

METHODS

A cohort of 2324 patients who underwent coronary angiography from 4 independent centers was studied. A combination of ultra-performance liquid chromatography and quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry in the negative ion mode was used for untargeted analysis of metabolites in plasma. Significant differential metabolites were identified by cross-comparisons with and within CAD types, including normal coronary artery, nonobstructvie coronary atherosclerosis, stable angina, unstable angina, and acute myocardial infarction. A tandem liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry-based approach using isotope-labeled standard addition was subsequently performed for targeted analysis of the metabolic marker N-acetylneuraminic acid (Neu5Ac). A functional metabolomics strategy was proposed to investigate the role of Neu5Ac in the progression of CAD by using in vitro and in vivo models.

RESULTS

We identified a total of 36 differential metabolites, 35 of which were confirmed with reference compounds. Elevation of Neu5Ac was observed in plasma during CAD progression in center 1 (P=4.0e-64, n=2019) and replicated in 3 independent centers (n=305). The increased level of Neu5Ac in plasma was confirmed by accurate targeted quantification. Mechanistically, Neu5Ac was able to trigger myocardial injury in vitro and in vivo by activation of the Rho/Rho-associated coiled-coil containing protein kinase signaling pathway through binding to RhoA and Cdc42, but not Rac1. Silencing neuraminidase-1, the enzyme that regulates Neu5Ac generation, ameliorated oxygen-glucose deprivation-induced injury in cardiomyocytes and ligation/isoprenaline-induced myocardial ischemia injury in rats. Pharmacological inhibition of neuraminidase by anti-influenza drugs, oseltamivir and zanamivir, also protected cardiomyocytes and the heart from myocardial injury.

CONCLUSIONS

Functional metabolomics identified a key role for Neu5Ac in acute myocardial infarction, and targeting neuraminidase-1 may represent an unrecognized therapeutic intervention for CAD.