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(1) Background: Methyl jasmonate-treated D. morbifera adventitious root extract (MeJA-DMARE), enriched with phenolics, has enhanced bioactivities. However, phenolics possess low stability and bioavailability. Substantial evidence indicates that plant extract–phospholipid complex assemblies, known as phytosomes, represent an innovative drug delivery system. (2) Methods: The phytosome complex was created by combining MeJA-DMARE with Soy-L-α-phosphatidylcholine (PC) using three different ratios through two distinct methods (co-solvency method: A1, A2, and A3; thin-layer film method: B1, B2, and B3). (3) Results: Initial evaluation based on UV-Vis, entrapment efficiency (EE%), and loading content (LC%) indicated that B2 exhibited the highest EE% (79.98 ± 1.45) and LC% (69.17 ± 0.14). The phytosome displayed a spherical morphology with a particle size of 210 nm, a notably low polydispersity index of 0.16, and a superior zeta potential value at −25.19 mV. The synthesized phytosome exhibited superior anti-inflammatory activities by inhibiting NO and ROS production (reduced to 8.9% and 55.1% at 250 μg/mL) in RAW cells and adjusting the expression of related inflammatory cytokines; they also slowed lung tumor cell migration (only 2.3% of A549 cells migrated after treatment with phytosomes at 250 μg/mL), promoting ROS generation in A549 cell lines (123.7% compared to control) and stimulating apoptosis of lung cancer-related genes. (4) Conclusions: In conclusion, the MeJA-DMARE phytosome offers stable, economically efficient, and environmentally friendly nanoparticles with superior inflammation and lung tumor inhibition properties. Thus, the MeJA-DMARE phytosome holds promise as an applicable and favorable creation for drug delivery and lung cancer treatment.

(1) Background: Phytochemicals are crucial antioxidants that play a significant role in preventing cancer. (2) Methods: We explored the use of methyl jasmonate (MeJA) in the in vitro cultivation of D. morbifera adventitious roots (DMAR) and evaluated its impact on secondary metabolite production in DMAR, optimizing concentration and exposure time for cost-effectiveness. We also assessed its anti-inflammatory and anti-lung cancer activities and related gene expression levels. (3) Results: MeJA treatment significantly increased the production of the phenolic compound 3,5-Di-caffeoylquinic acid (3,5-DCQA). The maximum 3,5-DCQA production was achieved with a MeJA treatment at 40 µM for 36 h. MeJA-DMARE displayed exceptional anti-inflammatory activity by inhibiting the production of nitric oxide (NO) and reactive oxygen species (ROS) in LPS-induced RAW 264.7 cells. Moreover, it downregulated the mRNA expression of key inflammation-related cytokines. Additionally, MeJA-DMARE exhibited anti-lung cancer activity by promoting ROS production in A549 lung cancer cells and inhibiting its migration. It also modulated apoptosis in lung cancer cells via the Bcl-2 and p38 MAPK pathways. (4) Conclusions: MeJA-treated DMARE with increased 3,5-DCQA production holds significant promise as a sustainable and novel material for pharmaceutical applications thanks to its potent antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-lung cancer properties.

This paper proposes a runoff-based hydroelectricity prediction method based on meteorological similar days and XGBoost model. Accurately predicting the hydroelectricity supply and demand is critical for conserving resources, ensuring power supply, and mitigating the impact of natural disasters. To achieve this, historical meteorological and runoff data are analyzed to select meteorological data that are similar to the current data, forming a meteorological similar day dataset. The XGBoost model is then trained and used to predict the meteorological similar day dataset and obtain hydroelectricity prediction results. To evaluate the proposed method, the hydroelectricity cluster in Yunnan, China, is used as sample data. The results show that the method exhibits high prediction accuracy and stability, providing an effective approach to hydroelectricity prediction. This study demonstrates the potential of using meteorological similar days and the XGBoost model for hydroelectricity prediction and highlights the importance of accurate hydroelectricity prediction for water resource management and electricity production.

The use of in vitro tissue culture for herbal medicines has been recognized as a valuable source of botanical secondary metabolites. The tissue culture of ginseng species is used in the production of bioactive compounds such as phenolics, polysaccharides, and especially ginsenosides, which are utilized in the food, cosmetics, and pharmaceutical industries. This review paper focuses on the in vitro culture of Panax ginseng and accumulation of ginsenosides. In vitro culture has been applied to study organogenesis and biomass culture, and is involved in direct organogenesis for rooting and shooting from explants and in indirect morphogenesis for somatic embryogenesis via the callus, which is a mass of disorganized cells. Biomass production was conducted with different types of tissue cultures, such as adventitious roots, cell suspension, and hairy roots, and subsequently on a large scale in a bioreactor. This review provides the cumulative knowledge of biotechnological methods to increase the ginsenoside resources of P. ginseng. In addition, ginsenosides are summarized at enhanced levels of activity and content with elicitor treatment, together with perspectives of new breeding tools which can be developed in P. ginseng in the future.

Discrimination of plant species, cultivars, and landraces is challenging because plants have high phenotypic and genotypic resemblance. Panax ginseng is commonly referred to as Korean ginseng, which contains saponins with high efficacy on cells, and has been reported to be worth billions in agroeconomic value. Korean ginseng’s increasing global agroeconomic value includes additional species and cultivars that are not Korean ginseng but have physical characteristics close to it. This almost unidentifiable physical characteristic of Korean ginseng-like species is discriminated via molecular markers. Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP), found across the plant species in abundance, is a valuable tool in the molecular mapping of genes and distinguishing a plant species from adulterants. Differentiating the composition of genes in species is quite evident, but the varieties and landraces have fewer differences in addition to single nucleotide mismatch. Especially in the exon region, there exist both favorable and adverse effects on species. With the aforementioned ideas in discriminating ginseng based on molecular markers, SNP has proven reliable and convenient, with advanced markers available. This article provides the simplest cost-effective guidelines for experiments in a traditional laboratory setting to get hands-on SNP marker analysis. Hence, the current review provides detailed up-to-date information about the discrimination of Panax ginseng exclusively based on SNP adding with a straightforward method explained which can be followed to perform the analysis.

In this work, a durable superhydrophobic fabric was fabricated by using a facile UV-induced surface covalent modification strategy. 2-isocyanatoethylmethacrylate (IEM) containing isocyanate groups can react with the pre-treated hydroxylated fabric, producing IEM molecules covalently grafted onto the fabric’s surface, and the double bonds of IEM and dodecafluoroheptyl methacrylate (DFMA) underwent a photo-initiated coupling reaction under UV light radiation, resulting in the DFMA molecules further grafting onto the fabric’s surface. The Fourier transform infrared, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy results revealed that both IEM and DFMA were covalently grafted onto the fabric’s surface. The formed rough structure and grafted low-surface-energy substance contributed to the excellent superhydrophobicity (water contact angle of ~162°) of the resultant modified fabric. Notably, such a superhydrophobic fabric can be used for efficient oil–water separation, for example a high separation efficiency of over 98%. More importantly, the modified fabric exhibited excellent durable superhydrophobicity in harsh conditions such as immersion in organic solvents for 72 h, an acidic or alkali solution (pH = 1–12) for 48 h, undergoing laundry washing for 3 h, exposure to extreme temperatures (from −196° to 120°), as well as damage such as 100 cycles of tape-peeling and a 100-cycle abrasion test; the water contact angle only slightly decreased from ~162° to 155°. This was attributed to the IEM and DFMA molecules grated onto the fabric through stable covalent interactions, which could be accomplished using the facile strategy, where the alcoholysis of isocyanate and the grafting of DFMA via click coupling chemistry were integrated into one-step. Therefore, this work provides a facile one-step surface modification strategy for preparing durable superhydrophobic fabric, which is promising for efficient oil–water separation.

Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists modified with albumin ligands which can specificity bind to the human serum albumin (HSA) was an efficient strategy to prolong the half-time of GLP-1. Herein, we investigated the effect of small-molecule albumin ligand modification on the hypoglycemic activities of GLP-1 derivatives. Two GLP-1 derivatives MPA-C12-GLP-1 and Rhein-C12-GLP-1 were achieved by modification of the side chain amino of lysine in position 26 of the Arg34-GLP-1(7−37)-OH with Rhein and 3-Maleimidopropionic acid respectively using 12-aminolauric acid as a linker, and its specific albumin-conjugating characteristics, pharmaceutical characterization, and the antidiabetic effects were investigated. In vitro level, two GLP-1 derivatives demonstrated a higher binding capacity to GLP-1 receptor than that of Arg34-GLP-1(7−37)-OH. Interestingly, although the binding ability of MPA-C12-GLP-1 was equal to liraglutide, the binding ability of Rhein-C12-GLP-1 was 10-fold higher than liraglutide. In vivo level, the two GLP-1 derivatives can significantly increase their glucose tolerance and prolong their half-life in ICR mice, and they were also superior to GLP-1 in controlling glucose homeostasis and suppression of food intake and water consumption in db/db mice. Importantly, the two GLP-1 derivatives showed comparable efficacy to liraglutide for the therapy of type 2 diabetes mellitus. The in vitro INS-1 cells toxicity and the in vivo hepatotoxicity indicated that the Rhein-C12-GLP-1 was a safe candidate for the therapy of type 2 diabetes, and the serum biomarkers determination results showed that the Rhein-modified GLP-1 could significantly improve the HbA1c and blood lipids, and the H&E stain exhibited that the Rhein-C12-GLP-1 can effectively promote β-cell proliferation and differentiation. In conclusion, the 3-Maleimidopropionic acid or Rhein-modified GLP-1derivatives have great potential for development as a Type 2 diabetes mellitus therapeutic drug.

Two-dimensional (2D) transition metal dichalcogenide nanosheets (TMDC NSs) have attracted growing interest due to their unique structure and properties. Although various methods have been developed to prepare TMDC NSs, there is still a great need for a novel strategy combining simplicity, generality, and high efficiency. In this study, we developed a novel polymer-assisted ball milling method for the efficient preparation of TMDC NSs with small sizes. The use of polymers can enhance the interaction of milling balls and TMDC materials, facilitate the exfoliation process, and prevent the exfoliated nanosheets from aggregating. The WSe2 NSs prepared by carboxymethyl cellulose sodium (CMC)-assisted ball milling have small lateral sizes (8~40 nm) with a high yield (~60%). The influence of the experimental conditions (polymer, milling time, and rotation speed) on the size and yield of the nanosheets was studied. Moreover, the present approach is also effective in producing other TMDC NSs, such as MoS2, WS2, and MoSe2. This study demonstrates that polymer-assisted ball milling is a simple, general, and effective method for the preparation of small-sized TMDC NSs.