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Abstract Background Depression is two-to-three times more frequent among women. The hypothalamus, a sexually dimorphic area, has been implicated in the pathophysiology of depression. Neuroinflammation-induced hypothalamic dysfunction underlies behaviors associated with depression. The lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced mouse model of depression has been well-validated in numerous laboratories, including our own, and is widely used to investigate the relationship between neuroinflammation and depression. However, the sex-specific differences in metabolic alterations underlying depression-associated hypothalamic neuroinflammation remain unknown. Methods Here, we employed the LPS-induced mouse model of depression to investigate hypothalamic metabolic changes in both male and female mice using a metabolomics approach. Through bioinformatics analysis, we confirmed the molecular pathways and biological processes associated with the identified metabolites. Furthermore, we employed quantitative real-time PCR, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, western blotting, and pharmacological interventions to further elucidate the underlying mechanisms. Results A total of 124 and 61 differential metabolites (DMs) were detected in male and female mice with depressive-like behavior, respectively, compared to their respective sex-matched control groups. Moreover, a comparison between female and male model mice identified 37 DMs. We capitalized on biochemical clustering and functional enrichment analyses to define the major metabolic changes in these DMs. More than 55% of the DMs clustered into lipids and lipid-like molecules, and an imbalance in lipids metabolism was presented in the hypothalamus. Furthermore, steroidogenic pathway was confirmed as a potential sex-specific pathway in the hypothalamus of female mice with depression. Pregnenolone, an upstream component of the steroid hormone biosynthesis pathway, was downregulated in female mice with depressive-like phenotypes but not in males and had considerable relevance to depressive-like behaviors in females. Moreover, exogenous pregnenolone infusion reversed depressive-like behaviors in female mice with depression. The 5α-reductase type I (SRD5A1), a steroidogenic hub enzyme involved in pregnenolone metabolism, was increased in the hypothalamus of female mice with depression. Its inhibition increased hypothalamic pregnenolone levels and ameliorated depressive-like behaviors in female mice with depression. Conclusions Our study findings demonstrate a marked sexual dimorphism at the metabolic level in depression, particularly in hypothalamic steroidogenic metabolism, identifying a potential sex-specific pathway in female mice with depressive-like behaviors.

Objective: We aimed to explore the protective effect of Panax notoginseng rhizomes (PNR) on renal ischemia and reperfusion injury (RIRI) and the underlying molecular network mechanism based on network pharmacology and combined systemic experimental validation.Methods: A bilateral RIRI model was established, and Cr, SCr, and BUN levels were detected. Then, the PNR was pretreated 1 week before the RIRI model was prepared. To determine the effects of the PNR in RIRI, histopathological damage and the effect of PNRs to the kidney was assessed, using TTC, HE, and TUNEL staining. Furthermore, the underlying network pharmacology mechanism was detected by screening drug–disease intersection targets from PPI protein interactions and GO and KEGG analysis, and the hub genes were screened for molecular docking based on the Degree value. Finally, the expression of hub genes in kidney tissues was verified by qPCR, and the protein expression of related genes was further detected by Western blot (WB).Results: PNR pretreatment could effectively increase Cr level, decrease SCr and BUN levels, reduce renal infarct areas and renal tubular cell injury areas, and inhibit renal cell apoptosis. By using network pharmacology combined with bioinformatics, we screened co-targets both Panax notoginseng (Sanchi) and RIRI, acquired ten hub genes, and successfully performed molecular docking. Of these, pretreatment with the PNR reduced the mRNA levels of IL6 and MMP9 at postoperative day 1 and TP53 at postoperative day 7, and the protein expression of MMP9 at postoperative day 1 in IRI rats. These results showed that the PNR could decrease kidney pathological injury in IRI rats and inhibit apoptotic reaction and cell inflammation so as to improve renal injury effectively, and the core network mechanism is involved in the inhibition of MMP9, TP53, and IL-6.Conclusion: The PNR has a marked protective effect for RIRI, and the underlying mechanism is involved in inhibiting the expression of MMP9, TP53, and IL-6. This striking discovery not only provides fruitful evidence for the protective effect of the PNR in RIRI rats but also provides a novel mechanic explanation.

Fusarium oxysporum is the main pathogen of Panax notoginseng root rot, and chemical fungicides remain the primary measures to control the disease. Plant essential oil (EO) is a volatile plant secondary metabolic product that does not produce any residue to replace chemical pesticide. To comprehensively understand the antifungal mechanism of Alpinia officinarum Hance EO, the physiological indicators, proteome and metabolome were analyzed using F. oxysporum spores and hyphae treated with different EO concentrations. The cell membrane was damaged after both low and high concentrations of EO treatment, along with leakage of the cell contents. To resist the destruction of membrane structure, fungi can increase the function of steroid biosynthesis and expression of these catalytic enzymes, including squalene monooxygenase (SQLE), sterol 14alpha-demethylase (CYP51, CYP61A), delta14-sterol reductase (TM7SF2, ERG4), methylsterol monooxygenase (MESO1), and sterol 24-C-methyltransferase (SMT1). Furthermore, the tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA) was influenced by inhibiting the expression of glutamate synthase (GLT1), 4-aminobutyrate aminotransferase (ABAT), and succinate-semialdehyde dehydrogenase (gabD); increasing malate and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA); and decreasing citrate content. The spore germination rate and mycelia growth were decreased because the expression of cohesin complex subunit SA-1/2 (IRR1) and cohesion complex subunit (YCS4, BRN1, YCG1) were inhibited. Particularly, under high EO concentrations, cyclin-dependent kinase (CDC28) and DNA replication licensing factor (MCM) were further inhibited to disrupt the cell cycle and meiosis, thus affecting cell division. The results of this study will enrich the understanding of the antifungal mechanism of EOs and provide an important basis to develop new plant-derived fungicides.

Amomum villosum Lour. as Chinese herbal medicine and seasoning, which has a huge potential economic value. This plant is increasing shortage of resources by the slow sexual reproduction and the low artificial reproduction rate. The plants with strong stress resistance and high yield were selected as the female parent, on the basis of single factor and complete combination, the orthogonal test of L9 (34) and L16 (45) was further conducted. 6-BA induced basal stem cluster bud formation was obviously better than that of KT or ZT. 2, 4-D significantly induced callus occurrence and node enlargement, while NAA was more beneficial to adventitious root formation The combination of 6-BA and NAA was more beneficial to induce the formation of cluster buds from basal stem, but the proliferation effect was not ideal. Thus, KT or 2, 4-D was introduced for two orthogonal tests of L9 (34), and the highest proliferation coefficient was only 4.56. Then it was found that adding 0.5 mg·L-1 2, 4-D to the above combination, appeared a unique phenomenon of node propagation. Next, L16 (45) orthogonal test was conducted using 4 plant growth regulators combinations of 6-BA, 2, 4-D, KT and NAA. The optimal medium for proliferation culture was the MS medium with 7.5 mg·L-1 6-BA, 5.0 mg·L-1 NAA, 1.5 mg·L-1 KT, 0.5 mg·L-1 2, 4-D, and the proliferation coefficient reached above 10.00. The optimal rooting medium was the 1/2 MS medium with 2.0 mg·L-1 NAA. With the node propagation, a rapid propagation system of A. villosum was established which provided a possible solution for improve the efficiency of artificial planting, solve the market demand and quality problems.

Essential oils (EOs) have been proposed as an alternative to conventional pesticides to inhibit fungal pathogens. However, the application of EOs is considerably limited due to their highly volatile nature and unpredictable effects on other microbes. In our study, the composition of bacterial and fungal communities from the rhizosphere soil of P. notoginseng under four treatment levels of Alpinia officinarum Hance EO was characterized over several growth stages. Leaf weight varied dramatically among the four EO treatment levels after four months of growth, and the disease index at a low concentration (0.14 mg/g) of EO addition was the lowest among the P. notoginseng growth stages. The content of monomeric saponins was elevated when EO was added. Bacterial and fungal diversity in the absence of plants showed a decreasing trend with increasing levels of EO. Bacterial diversity recovery was more correlated with plant growth than was fungal diversity recovery. Compared with the control (no EO addition), a low concentration of EO significantly accumulated Actinomycota, including Acidothermus, Blastococcus, Catenulispora, Conexibacter, Rhodococcus, and Sinomonas, after one month of plant-microbial interaction. Overall, the results showed that both the plant growth stage and EOs drive changes in the microbial community composition in the rhizosphere of P. notoginseng. Plant development status had a stronger influence on bacterial diversity than on fungal diversity. EO had a more significant effect on fungal community composition, increasing the dominance of Ascomycota when EO concentration was increased. Under the interaction of P. notoginseng growth and EO, a large number of bacterial genera that have been described as plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) responded positively to low concentrations of EO application, suggesting that EO may recruit beneficial microbes in the root zone to cope with pathogens and reduce root rot disease. These results offer novel insights into the relationship between EO application, altered microbial communities in the plant roots, plant growth stage, and disease occurrence.

Gentiana rigescens Franch. ex Hemsl. is an important medicinal plant in China and the over exploitation of wild resources has affected its quality and clinical efficacy. The accumulation of plant secondary metabolites is not only determined by their genetic characteristics but also influenced by environmental factors. At present, many studies on evaluating the environmental conditions of its planting area are still in the qualitative stage. Therefore, it is necessary to establish a systematic evaluation method to deeply analyze the impact of environmental factors on the quality of medicinal materials and quickly verify the geographical origin. In this study, the contents of five iridoids (loganic acid, swertiamarin, sweroside, gentiopicroside and 6'-O-β-D-glucopyranosylgentiopicroside) of G. rigescens from 45 different origins (including 441 individuals) of Yunnan Province in China were analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography. Analytical procedures of one-way analysis of variance, correlation analysis, principal components analysis, and hierarchical cluster analysis were employed to interpret the correlation of iridoid content and environmental factors. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) combined with two multivariate analysis methods (partial least squares discriminant analysis; support vector machines, SVM) was used to discriminate four major producing areas (158 individuals). The combination of SVM with grid search algorithm achieved an accuracy of 100% in the test set. One-way analysis of variance showed that the contents of five iridoids in root tissues of G. rigescens varied significantly among different origins, which was also verified by the chemometrics analysis results of hierarchical cluster analysis. The results of correlation analysis indicated that the high value of altitude and precipitation were unfavorable for the accumulation of these five iridoids. A correlation between increase of temperature and iridoid accumulation was observed. This study provided a certain theoretical basis for the resource protection and development of G. rigescens based on the correlation analysis between the ecological environment factors and quality.

AIM: To investigate the prevalence and related factors of visual display terminal(VDT)syndrome in migrant workers caused by using smartphones.METHODS: From January to October 2014, migrant workers who worked in 10 factories individually in Tangxia Town Dongguan City, were selected by systematic sampling. Every participant was asked to complete the visual display terminal questionnaire and acepted accommodative amplitude determination, tear-film break up time, corneal fluorescein staining, Schirmer I text and so on. The data was analyzed by the SPSS 19.0 software. RESULTS: Four hundred and sixty-nine people were enrolled(246 males, 223 females). Among them, 384 cases(206 males and 178 females)were diagnosed as the VDT syndrome, the prevalence rate was 81.9%. Compared the prevalence rate in different gender in 40～CONCLUSION:The main factors for VDT syndrome in the migrant workers are reading novels, watching videos, being in dark and shaking space, poor sport and less interval. To get rid of the bad habits in using smartphones, do more sport, take more intervals, moisten the ocular surface are expected to prevent VDT syndrome.

The root of Panax notoginseng (P. notoginseng) is one of the most highly valuable medicinal herbs in China owing to its pronounced hemostatic and restorative properties. Despite this important fact, growing P. notoginseng is seriously limited by root-rot diseases. In studies aimed at developing a solution to this problem, environment-friendly essential oils (EOs) of five medicinal plants of the family Zingiberaceae were tested for their inhibitory effects on the growth of three main soil pathogens associated with the root-rot diseases of P. notoginseng. The results showed that the EOs of Alpinia katsumadai Hayata and Zingiber officinale Roscoe promote significant reductions in the mycelium growth of the pathogen in vitro at a concentration of 50 mg mL−1, which is much higher than that needed (5 mg mL−1) to reduce growth by the positive control, flutriafol. Furthermore, the chemical components of the two EOs were determined by using GC-MS analysis. Eucalyptol was found to account for more than 30% of the oils of the two plants, with the second major components being geranyl acetate and α-terpineol. These substances display different degrees of fungistasis in vitro. To further determine the effects of the EO of Zingiber officinale (Z. officinale) in vivo, soilless cultivation of P. notoginseng with pathogen inoculation was conducted in a greenhouse. Addition of the petroleum ether extract (approximately equal to EO) of Z. officinale to the culture matrix causes a large decrease in both the occurrence and severity of the P. notoginseng root-rot disease. The decreasing trend of net photosynthetic rate (Pn), stomatal conductance (gs), intercellular CO2 concentration (Ci), and transpiration rate (Tr) were all alleviated. In addition, the activities of catalase (CAT), peroxidase (POD), and the malondialdehyde (MDA) content were also largely reduced after pathogen infection, with the root activity being higher than that of the control. Taken together, the findings reveal that the EOs from plants might serve as promising sources of eco-friendly natural pesticides with less chemical resistance.

Root rot of Panax notoginseng has received great attention due to its threat on the plantation and sustainable utilization of P. notoginseng. To suppress the root-rot disease, natural ingredients are of great importance because of their environment friendly properties. In this study, we found that the methanol extract from Artemisia annua leaves has strong antifungal effects on the growth of Fusarium oxysporum and Fusarium solani resulting into root-rot disease. Essential oil (EO) thereof was found to be the most active. GC-MS analysis revealed 58 ingredients and camphor, camphene, β-caryophyllene, and germacrene D were identified as the major ingredients. Further antifungal assays showed that the main compounds exhibit various degrees of inhibition against all the fungi tested. In addition, synergistic effects between A. annua EO and chemical fungicides were examined. Finally, in vivo experiments were conducted and disclosed that P. notoginseng root rot could be largely inhibited by the petroleum ether extract from A. annua, indicating that A. annua could be a good source for controlling P. notoginseng root-rot.

Replanting obstacles of Panax notoginseng caused by complex factors, including pathogens, have received great attention. In this study, essential oils (EOs) from either Alpinia officinarum Hance or Amomum tsao-ko (Zingiberaceae) were found to inhibit the growth of P. notoginseng-associated pathogenic fungi in vitro. Subsequent GC-MS analysis revealed the chemical profiles of two plant derived EOs. Linalool and eucalyptol were found to be abundant in the EOs and tested for their antifungal activities. In addition, the synergistic effects of A. tsao-ko EOs and hymexazol were also examined. These findings suggested that Zingiberaceae EOs might be a good source for developing new green natural pesticides fighting against root-rot of P. notoginseng.

Chemical agents in the rhizosphere soils of plants might have an influence on root-rot disease, which therefore might reveal the mechanism of root rot in Panax notoginseng (P. notoginseng). With this hypothesis the alterations of phenolic acids (PAs) in the rhizosphere soils of P. notoginseng after pathogen infection were determined. The effects of PAs on the growth of Fusarium oxysporum (F. oxysporum), a fungal pathogenic factor for P. notoginseng, as well as production of fusaric acid, a wilting agent for the plants, were also examined. The results indicate the presence of five PAs (ferulic acid, syringic acid, p-hydroxybenzoic acid, p-coumaric acid, and vanillic acid) in the rhizosphere soils of P. notoginseng, whose contents in the rhizosphere soils of healthy plants are higher than those of the diseased ones. Further we found that individual PA could inhibit the mycelium growth and spore production of F. oxysporum, but stimulate fusaric acid production as well, disclosing the double-edge sword role of PAs in the occurrence of root rot of P. notoginseng and paving the way for the intervention of P. notoginseng root rot via balancing PAs.

Pseudolarolides U and V, two new triterpenoids, and four biogenetically related compounds, pseudolarolides E, F, K, and P were isolated from the roots of Codonopsis pilosula (Campanulaceae). Their structures were determined by spectroscopic data. The regulation of Sirtuin 1 (SIRT1) activity by all the isolated compounds was evaluated.

AIM: To compare the therapeutic effect of lacrimal probing through upper and lower lacrimal punctum in neonatal dacryocystitis.METHODS: Totally, 262 cases(286 eyes)of neonatal dacryocystitis which failed in a two-week conservative treatment were selected from January 2006 to January 2013 in our outpatient department. They were randomly divided into Group A and Group B. Then, 133 cases(149 eyes)in Group A received lacrimal probing through upper lacrimal punctum, and 129 cases(137 eyes)in Group B received lacrimal probing through lower lacrimal punctum. The patients were followed up for one month and therapeutic effect and incidence of complications of the two methods were compared.RESULTS: The cure rate of was 98.7% in Group A and 93.4% in Group B. The incidence of the complications in Group A was lower than that of Group B. The differences between the two groups were significant(PCONCLUSION: Lacrimal probing through upper lacrimal punctum in neonatal dacryocystitis is more effective than probing through lower lacrimal punctum,and it has a lower incidence of complications including lacrimal tear, false passage and secondary adhesion.

Primula denticulata subsp. sinodenticulata is an endemic medicinal plant from China; however, its resources are extremely scarce due to a lot of obstacles such as scattered distribution, long natural renewal cycle, and overexploitation for medicinal value. In this study, a rapid propagation protocol in vitro of P. denticulata subsp. sinodenticulata was established, hoping to provide a possible way for resource protection. The leaves and petioles of different ages of the plant were selected as explants, and Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium were used as the basic medium. The appropriate types and concentrations of hormones for growth were selected via a single factor, and then the effects of types and concentrations of different hormones on callus induction and cluster bud occurrence were investigated by a complete combination experiment. The study showed that the callus with a strong redifferentiation capacity was obtained from 8-to 10-day old leaves and 10- to 20-day old petioles in MS medium with 0.5 mg/l 6-benzylaminopurine (BA) and 1.0 mg/l α-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA) after 30 to 40 days of culture. Subsequently, green cluster bud started to appear with 100% occurrence rate. The obtained cluster bud was subcultured in the aforementioned medium with 12.67 proliferation coefficient. The optimal rooting medium was the hormone-free 1/2MS medium; the rooting rate was 100%, and the survival rate was over 95%. In this study, micropropagation of P. denticulata subsp. sinodenticulata was established, which can provide an optional method for the protection of wild resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The γ-ray spectra of 188Re decay have been studied by using a Compton-suppressed spectrometer and a three parameters γ-γ-T list coincidence system. Experimental data analysis demonstrated that six γ-rays at 557, 810, 1463, 1867, 1936 and 2022 keV and three levels at 1443, 1936 and 2022 keV are confirmed again. Seven new γ-rays at 309.60±0.04, 826.90±0.02, 979.29±0.08, 1103.7±0.4, 1828.2±0.1, 1842.5±0.2 and 1982.5±0.2 keV have been identified, three new levels at 309.60, 1828.2 and 1982.5 keV are assigned. The β- decay branching ratio is deduced. In addition, in order to study this γ-unstable nucleus, shape calculations using the Hartree–Fock–Bogoliubov-like formalism were carried out for positive-parity states in 188Os. The TRS plots reveal that, as the spin increases up the band, the triaxiality parameter γ changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quadrupole and octupole stiffnesses in the ground states of even-even 112-150Ba isotopes have been systematically investigated by means of potential-energy-surface calculations. The calculations are carried out in both (β2,γ,β4) and ((β2, (β3, (β4, (β5) deformation spaces with the inclusion of triaxial and reflection-asymmetric shape degrees of freedom, respectively. The present results are compared with previous calculations and available experiments. The shape instabilities are evaluated by analyzing the potential energy curves with respect to both the quadrupole and octupole deformations, which is consistent with the previous discussions predicting the γ softness or triaxiality and octupole instability. In addition, taking the near-drip-line 114Ba nucleus as an example, we briefly investigate the effects of potential parameters (e.g., the strength of the spin-orbit potential λ, and the nuclear surface diffuseness a) on the deformation energy curve, showing almost negligible modifications of nuclear shape and stiffness but considerable changes in the depth of the minimum and the height of the fission barrier (which may be very important for the study of heavy and superheavy nuclei). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The collective nature of high-spin yrast states in even-even 160-190W isotopes was systematically investigated by means of pairing self-consistent Woods-Saxon-Strutinsky calculations using the total Routhian surface approach in (β2,γ,β4) deformation space. The calculated ground-state deformations are consistent with previous calculations and available experimental data. The deformation energy curves are presented to show the shape and softness evolutions, in particular in the triaxial direction. The backbending or upbending behavior in moment of inertia is attributed to band crossing. It is found that the neutron rotation alignment is preferred for most of the W isotopes (e.g., in 164-180W), while in other nuclei the competition between the neutron and proton alignments may occur, even the proton alignment is favored in the very neutron-deficient nucleus 160W. In addition, the evolution and transition between vibrational and rotational collective modes along the yrast line are investigated on the basis of the new centipedelike E-GOS (E-Gamma Over Spin) curves introduced by us, which to some extent explains the existing differences (e.g., in the moment of inertia) between theory and experiment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]