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We investigated the effects of Lactuca sativa L. extracts (Lactuc) on pentobarbital-induced sleep in mice to elucidate the mechanisms underlying its impact on sleep quality. Mice were randomly assigned to five groups: control, positive control (diazepam 2 mg/kg b.w.), and three groups orally administered with Lactuc (50, 100, and 200 mg/kg b.w.). After 2 weeks of oral administration and intraperitoneal injections, the mice were killed. We found that the Lactuc-administered groups had significantly reduced sleep latency and increased sleep duration compared with the control group. Furthermore, the oral administration of Lactuc induced a significant increase in mRNA expression and protein expression of adenosine A1 receptor in the brains compared with the expressions in the control group. In addition, the Lactuc-administered groups exhibited significantly higher levels of mRNA expressions of GABAA receptors subunits α2, β2, γ1, and, γ2 in the brain tissue. Therefore, we suggest that Lactuc could be used to develop natural products that effectively improve sleep quality and duration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the protective effects of a complex of Indian gooseberry and barley sprout (IB complex) on oxidative stress and skin damage caused by ultraviolet B irradiation in SHK-I hairless mice. The study examined the impact of IB complex on skin hydration, wrinkle formation, and melanogenesis using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, real-time polymerase chain reaction, and western blot analysis. The IB complex reduced skin hydration loss and wrinkle formation, while also demonstrating enhanced antioxidant activities. The IB complex maintained skin hydration via upregulation of hyaluronic acid and ceramide synthesis, including the regulation of hyaluronic acid synthase, long-chain ceramide formation, dihydroceramide desaturase 1 activity, and type I collagen production. The IB complex prevented wrinkle formation via downregulating JNK and upregulating TGF-β pathways. Moreover, IB complex blocked melanin production via inhibition of protein kinase A, cAMP response element-binding protein, and microphthalmia-associated transcription factor pathways. These results suggest that IB complex is a potential agent to protect the skin against photodamage caused by exposure to UVB radiation. The research protocols underwent approval from the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee of Kyung Hee University (KHGASP-21-577), ensuring compliance with ethical standards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of low-molecular-weight fish collagen (valine-glycine-proline-hydroxyproline-glycine-proline-alanine-glycine; LMWCP) on H2O2- or LPS-treated primary chondrocytes and monoiodoacetate (MIA)-induced osteoarthritis rat models. Our findings indicated that LMWCP treatment exhibited protective effects by preventing chondrocyte death and reducing matrix degradation in both H2O2-treated primary chondrocytes and cartilage tissue from MIA-induced osteoarthritis rats. This was achieved by increasing the levels of aggrecan, collagen type I, collagen type II, TIMP-1, and TIMP-3, while simultaneously decreasing catabolic factors such as phosphorylation of Smad, MMP-3, and MMP-13. Additionally, LMWCP treatment effectively suppressed the activation of inflammation and apoptosis pathways in both LPS-treated primary chondrocytes and cartilage tissue from MIA-induced osteoarthritis rats. These results suggest that LMWCP supplementation ameliorates the progression of osteoarthritis through its direct impact on inflammation and apoptosis in chondrocytes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The excessive storage of triglycerides in adipose tissue is a characteristic feature of obesity, which arises from an imbalance between energy intake and expenditure. In this study, we aimed to explore the potential anti-obesity effects of Salacia reticulata extracts (SC) in a high-fat diet (HFD)-induced in obese mice and 3T3-L1 adipocytes, with a specific focus on understanding the underlying lipid mechanisms. Mice were fed with a normal diet (NC; normal control), HFD (60% high-fat diet), Met (HFD containing metformin 250 mg/kg b.w.), SC25 (HFD containing SC 25 mg/kg b.w.), SC50 (HFD containing SC 50 mg/kg b.w.), or SC 100 (HFD containing SC 100 mg/kg b.w.) for 12 weeks. Notably, SC supplementation led to significant reductions in body weight gain, adipose tissue weight, adipose tissue mass, and adipocyte size in HFD-fed mice. Furthermore, SC supplementation exerted inhibitory effects on the adipogenesis and lipogenesis pathways while promoting lipolysis and thermogenesis pathways in the adipose tissues of HFD-fed mice. In vitro experiments using 3T3-L1 cells demonstrated that SC treatment during the differentiation phase suppressed adipogenesis and lipogenesis, whereas SC treatment after differentiation, activated lipolysis and thermogenesis. Collectively, these findings indicate that SC exhibits a direct influence on the lipid metabolism of adipocytes, making it an effective candidate for weight loss interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we evaluated the effects of Lactobacillus reuteri NCIMB (LRC™) supplementation on hypercholesterolemia by researching its effects on cellular cholesterol metabolism in hypercholesterolemic rats (KHGASP-22-170) and HepG2 cell line. Rats were separated into six groups after adaptation and were then fed a normal control (NC), a high-cholesterol diet (HC), or a HC supplemented with simvastatin 15 mg/kg body weight (positive control [PC]), LRC 1 × 109 colony-forming units (CFU)/rat/day, LRC 4 × 109 CFU/rat/day, or LRC 1 × 1010 CFU/rat/day (1 × 109, 4 × 109, or 1 × 1010). The rats were dissected to study the effects of LRC on cholesterol metabolism and intestinal excretion at the end of experimental period. We discovered that LRC mainly participated in the restraint of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A (HMG-CoA) reductase, the uptake of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol into tissues, partially in the transport of cholesteryl esters into high density lipoprotein for maturation, and intestinal excretion of cholesterol. These results are supported by the expression of transcription factors and enzymes such as HMG-CoA reductase, SREBP2, CYP7A1, CETP, and LCAT in both messenger RNA (mRNA) and protein levels in serum and hepatic tissue. Furthermore, the LRC treatment in HepG2 significantly reduced the mRNA expression of HMG-CoA reductase, SREBP2, and CEPT and significantly increased the mRNA expression of LDL-receptor, LCAT, and CYP7A1 at all doses. Hence, we suggest that LRC supplementation could alleviate the serum cholesterol level by inhibiting the intracellular cholesterol synthesis, and augmenting excretion of intestinal cholesterol. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is a common and aggressive subtype of lymphoma, and accurate survival prediction is crucial for treatment decisions. This study aims to develop a robust survival prediction strategy to integrate various risk factors effectively, including clinical risk factors and Deauville scores in positron-emission tomography/computed tomography at different treatment stages using a deep-learning-based approach. We conduct a multi-institutional study on 604 DLBCL patients' clinical data and validate the model on 220 patients from an independent institution. We propose a survival prediction model using transformer architecture and a categorical-feature-embedding technique that can handle high-dimensional and categorical data. Comparison with deep-learning survival models such as DeepSurv, CoxTime, and CoxCC based on the concordance index (C-index) and the mean absolute error (MAE) demonstrates that the categorical features obtained using transformers improved the MAE and the C-index. The proposed model outperforms the best-performing existing method by approximately 185 days in terms of the MAE for survival time estimation on the testing set. Using the Deauville score obtained during treatment resulted in a 0.02 improvement in the C-index and a 53.71-day improvement in the MAE, highlighting its prognostic importance. Our deep-learning model could improve survival prediction accuracy and treatment personalization for DLBCL patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explored and analyzed the potential of the practical use of acid mine drainage-treated sludge (AMDS) as a new soil stabilizer for arsenic (As) and heavy metals. Various analyses, toxicity evaluations, and extraction batch experiments were performed to investigate the characteristics of the AMDS as a soil stabilizer and to identify the main mechanisms to fix As and heavy metals on the AMDS in soil. Two types of AMDS, copper metal mine drainage-treated sludge (MMDS) and coal mine drainage-treated sludge (CMDS) and four contaminated soils with different pollution scenarios were used in the experiments. 'Soil A' and 'Soil D' were mainly contaminated with Cd, Pb and Zn. 'Soil B' and 'Soil C' were contaminated with As. Results from XRD, XRF, SEM-EDS, TG-DTA, and BET analyses suggested that AMDS is mainly composed of Fe- and Ca- bearing minerals such as CaCO3, Ca(OH)2 and amorphous Fe-oxide (hydroxide), which have a large surface area and high adsorption capacity for As and heavy metals. From batch extraction experiments, the Pb stabilization efficiency of both of the AMDSs in soil A, which has a high Pb and Zn content, was higher than 90%. The high heavy metal stabilization efficiency comes directly from the electrostatic attraction between metal cations and the negatively charged AMDS surface and/or from the co-precipitation of metal oxide (hydroxide) and CaCO3, which occurs comprehensively on the AMDS surface. In the case of Zn, the stabilization efficiency in soil A was somewhat low due to the adsorption competition with Pb, but the Zn stabilization efficiency of the CMDS in soil A was higher than 80% (70% or higher for the MMDS). For soil D, the Zn stabilization efficiency of two AMDSs was higher than 85% because of the lower concentration of other heavy metals in soil D, compared to in soil A. The As stabilization efficiency of the AMDSs in soil contaminated with As (soil B and soil C) was higher than 85%, (mostly > 95%). The overall stabilization efficiency of two AMDSs for heavy metals and As were higher than 75% and 85% (mostly > 90%), respectively, regardless of soil type. We concluded that this high As stabilization efficiency was due to the formation of a new complex by ligand exchange between the Fe- (oxide) hydroxide and the arsenate and also to the cation bridge effect between the AMDS surface and the arsenate as well as the co-precipitation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Distinct viral gene expression characterizes Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection in EBV-producing marmoset B-cell (B95-8) and EBV-associated gastric carcinoma (SNU719) cell lines. CCCTC-binding factor (CTCF) is a structural chromatin factor that coordinates chromatin interactions in the EBV genome. Chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by sequencing against CTCF revealed 16 CTCF binding sites in the B95-8 and SNU719 EBV genomes. The biological function of one CTCF binding site (S13 locus) located on the BamHI A right transcript (BART) miRNA promoter was elucidated experimentally. Microscale thermophoresis assay showed that CTCF binds more readily to the stable form than the mutant form of the S13 locus. EBV BART miRNA clusters encode 22 miRNAs, whose roles are implicated in EBV-related cancer pathogenesis. The B95-8 EBV genome lacks a 11.8-kb EcoRI C fragment, whereas the SNU719 EBV genome is full-length. ChIP-PCR assay revealed that CTCF, RNA polymerase II, H3K4me3 histone, and H3K9me3 histone were more enriched at S13 and S16 (167-kb) loci in B95-8 than in the SNU719 EBV genome. 4C-Seq and 3C-PCR assays using B95-8 and SNU719 cells showed that the S13 locus was associated with overall EBV genomic loci including 3-kb and 167-kb region in both EBV genomes. We generated mutations in the S13 locus in bacmids with or without the 11.8-kb BART transcript unit (BART(+/-)). The S13 mutation upregulated BART miRNA expression, weakened EBV latency, and reduced EBV infectivity in the presence of EcoRI C fragment. Another 3C-PCR assay using four types of BART(+/-)·S13(wild-type(Wt)/mutant(Mt)) HEK293-EBV cells revealed that the S13 mutation decreased DNA associations between the 167-kb region and 3-kb in the EBV genome. Based on these results, CTCF bound to the S13 locus along with the 11.8-kb EcoRI C fragment is suggested to form an EBV 3-dimensional DNA loop for coordinated EBV BART miRNA expression and infectivity. Author summary: A CCCTC-binding factor binding site (S13 locus) on the BamHI A right transcript miRNA promoter was identified by Chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by sequencing and MST assays. Next, we investigated the functional roles of the S13 locus using reverse genetics followed by 4C-Seq and 3C-PCR assays. We found that in the presence of the 11.8-kb EcoRI C fragment, the S13 locus is associated with overall EBV genomic loci including 3-kb (S1) and 167-kb (S16). Reverse genetic studies demonstrated that the S13 locus plays an inhibitory role in EBV BART miRNA expression and lytic reactivation in the presence of the EcoRI C fragment. Thus, the S13 locus is suggested to form a cluster of DNA loops with the OriP (S1) and LMP1/2 (S16) loci to coordinate the EBV life cycle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For this research article, we investigated the protective effects of enzyme-treated caviar powder extract (CV) in ultraviolet B (UVB)-irradiated hairless mice and keratinocytes by confirming moisturizing-related factors and elasticity-related factors. UVB irradiation induced wrinkle formation, dehydration, oxidative stress, and inflammation in the dorsal skin of mice; however, these were suppressed in the CV-supplemented groups in UVB-irradiated hairless mice. Furthermore, in UVB-irradiated keratinocytes, CV treatment increased the antioxidant enzyme activities and the levels of sphingomyelin and hyaluronic acid and decreased the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines and the expression of IkB-α and p65 phosphorylation. These findings indicate that CV can directly protect keratinocytes against UVB irradiation-induced oxidative stress and inflammation. Therefore, we suggest that CV can protect against UVB-induced skin photoaging. Therefore, we suggest that caviar is effective for skin health by preventing UVB-induced skin photoaging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present research purposed to examine the gastro-protective effect of Glycine max (L.) Merr. fermented using Lactobacillus delbrueckii ssp. delbrueckii Rosell-187 (Gastro-AD®) on ethanol/HCl-induced gastric damage, specifically on gastric acid secretion. After oral supplementation of Gastro-AD® to Sprague–Dawley (SD) rats with ethanol/HCl-induced gastric damage, we determined that Gastro-AD® attenuated the gastric mucosal lesion, hemorrhage and gastric acid secretion induced by ethanol/HCl. In addition, we observed that the Gastro-AD® treatment increased the serum prostaglandin E2 level and decreased the levels of gastric acid secretion-related receptors in both gastric tissues and primary gastric parietal cells. Furthermore, it decreased the levels of inflammatory factors, including serum histamine and expression of p-IκB, p-p65, iNOS and COX-2 and the activity of apoptotic signaling pathways, including those involving p-JNK, Bcl2/Bax, Fas, FADD, caspase-8 and caspase-3, in the stomach of the ethanol/HCl-treated rats. Thus, we suggest that Gastro-AD® supplementation may reduce ethanol/HCl-induced gastric acid secretion and prevent gastric injury. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we investigated the protective effects of low-molecular-weight fish collagen from tilapia against melanogenesis in melanocytes, ultraviolet B (UVB)-irradiated Hs27 skin fibroblasts, and hairless mice. We observed collagen production-related pathways in UVB-irradiated Hs27 skin fibroblasts and hairless mice, and the melanogenesis-related pathways in melanocyte and UVB-irradiated hairless mice. The collagen production-related pathways were activated in the UVB-irradiated Hs27 skin fibroblasts and hairless mice. In addition, UVB exposure stimulated the melanogenesis-related pathways in melanocytes and hairless mice. However, treatment with low-molecular-weight fish collagen significantly increased the messenger RNA expressions of collagen production-related factors and significantly decreased the production of cytokines. Furthermore, treatment with low-molecular-weight fish collagen suppressed melanogenesis by inhibiting glutathione synthesis and downregulating melanocyte-inducing transcription factor expression through the suppression of cyclic AMP/protein kinase A/cAMP-responsive binding protein signaling and nitric oxide production. Low-molecular-weight fish collagen exerts protective effects against UVB-induced photoaging, through anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and anti-melanogenesis activities and could be used for developing effective natural anti-photoaging products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our study investigated that the anti-obesity effect of the Trapa japonica Flerov extract (TJ) in differentiated 3T3-L1 adipocytes. To this end, 3T3-L1 cells were treated with TJ during their differentiation period. On the last day of the cell culture, we tested intracellular cAMP, FA, glycerol release, TG, and performed Oil Red O staining and Western blot assays. On the part of adipogenesis, lipogenesis, and lipolysis mechanism, TJ increased the cAMP (maximum 125.4%) levels and glycerol release (maximum four times) and decreased FA (maximum 35.1%) and TG (maximum 35.7%) levels. Furthermore, the protein expression levels of each mechanism-related factor were regulated in a dose-dependent manner. These results indicate that TJ reduced lipid accumulation by max 53.6% and 47.9%, respectively, in adipogenesis and lipolysis mechanisms. We expect this effect of TJ to be due to its component, ellagic acid. In conclusion, we found that TJ inhibits TG synthesis during adipogenesis and lipogenesis, promotes lipolysis, and thus, indicating its potential as a functional food for obesity prevention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]