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Phytochemical investigation of the whole plant of Actaea vaginata led to the isolation of five cycloartane triterpene glycosides, including three new Actaeoside A−C (1 − 3) along with two known analogues, beesiosides E (4) and N (5). Their structures were elucidated by NMR, HRESIMS and chemical analysis. The cytotoxicity of compounds (1 − 5) was assayed against HT-29 and HepG2 cancer cell lines. All the isolates showed moderate degrees of inhibitory activity against the HT-29 with IC 50 values in a range of 18.2–27.8 μM. [Display omitted] • Five cycloartane triterpenoid glycosides were isolated from Actaea vaginata. • Three new and two known compounds were identified by spectroscopic analyses and chemical methods. • Cytotoxicity against HepG2 and HT-29 cancer cell lines were evaluated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

4-Dimethylaminobenzaldehyde-thiosemicarbazone (DABT) and 4-dimethylaminobenzaldehyde-N-phenyl-thiosemicarbazone (DABPT) were synthesized and established by 1H and 13C NMR and mass spectrum. Both compounds were evaluated for their inhibition activities on mushroom tyrosinase and their anti-tyrosinase kinetics was investigated. The results showed that both compounds exhibited significant inhibitory effects on activity of monophenolase and diphenolase; DABT and DABPT decreased the steady-state rate with 1.54 μM and 1.78 μM as their IC 50 values respectively. The inhibitory effects of diphenolase activity exhibited sharp in a dose-dependent manner and their IC 50 values were estimated as 2.01 μM and 0.80 μM, respectively. Kinetic analysis showed that their inhibition mechanism was reversible. The inhibition type of DABT was mix-type with inhibition constants K I = 1.77 μM and K IS = 6.49 μM, while that of DABPT displays non-competitive with the inhibition constant K I = 0.77 μM. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In this paper, we study the long-time behavior of the non-autonomous reaction-diffusion equation with nonlinear boundary condition and competing nonlinearities. Under the balance conditions between internal and boundary nonlinear terms, which have been proved in Rodríguez-Bernal and Tajdine (2001)  to prevent solution from blow-up, we prove the existence of a compact uniform attractor in where is the growing exponent of internal nonlinearity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In this paper, we prove the existence of the -global attractor for the -Laplacian equation with a more general nonlinear term in , where and satisfy the arbitrary -order polynomial growth condition without any restriction on . [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Natural occurrence of citrinin in traditional Chinese food red yeast rice, medicinal plants and their related products has been investigated for the first time. Samples were extracted by methanol/water, cleaned-up with an immunoaffinity column (IAC) and quantified by HPLC–FLD. The mean recoveries, spiking with citrinin at levels ranging from 25 to 200μg/kg, were 73.4–92.5%, and the coefficients of variations (CVs) were 1.4–7.9%. The limit of detection (LOD) was 0.8μg/kg. Out of a total of 109 widely consumed samples analysed, citrinin was detected in 31 samples (28%) ranging from 16.6 to 5253μg/kg, all of them derived from 59 red yeast rice and related products. None of the remaining 50 medicinal plants samples was found to contain citrinin. The positive samples were further confirmed using LC–ESI–MS/MS. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

A series of samarium-modified vanadium phosphate catalysts were prepared and studied in selective oxidation of n -butane to maleic anhydride. The catalytic evaluation showed that Sm modification significantly increased the overall n -butane conversion and intrinsic activity. N 2 -adsorption, XRD, SEM, Raman, XPS, EPR and H 2 -TPR techniques were used to investigate the intrinsic difference among these catalysts. The results revealed that the addition of Sm to VPO catalyst can increase the surface area of the catalyst, lead to a significant change in catalyst morphology from plate-like structure into rosette-shape clusters, and largely promote the formation of (VO) 2 P 2 O 7 . All of these were related to the different catalytic performance of Sm-doped and undoped VPO catalysts. The roles of the different VOPO 4 phases and the influence of Sm were also described and discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multi-mycotoxin contamination of barley reduces malt quality and also poses serious health risks to both humans and animals. Among the detected mycotoxins in barley, Fusarium and Alternaria toxins represent severe food safety issues due to their widespread prevalence and strong synergistic toxicity. In this study, the effects of Fusarium and Alternaria fungi and their related toxins were investigated using simulated malting process conditions for contaminated barley samples. The dynamic changes of the fungal community and their associated mycotoxins were analyzed via high-throughput sequencing and UHPLC-q-trap-MS/MS, respectively. The results showed significant differences in the fungal communities between barley grains and their associated malt samples. These differences were noted for the following: fungal community diversity, dominant flora and the fungal structures at phylum, genus, and family level. Additionally, significant changes in the levels of alternariol monomethyl ether, tentoxin, zearalenone, and 15Acetyl-Deoxynivelenone were observed (p < 0.05) during the malting process. These results provide valuable information for strategies aimed at controlling fungal infections and the presence of mycotoxins in malt, so as to ensure food safety and human health. • Dynamic changes of fungal community and the associated mycotoxins were analyzed from barley germination to malt. • Significant differences on fungal community diversity and composition were observed different between barley and malt. • ZEN, TEN, and 15ADON showed significant increasing trends during the malting process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Ethnopharmacological relevance: Numerous efforts have been conducted in searching for effective agents against cancer, in particular from herbal medicines. Justicia procumbens is a traditional herbal remedy which was produced in the south-western and southern provinces of China and Taiwan province used to treat fever, pain, and cancer. Here, we identified a new compound 6′-hydroxy justicidin A (JR6) from Justicia procumbens, which showed obvious anti-cancer effects. Materials and methods: The cytotoxicity activity was assayed using MTT and SRB. Intracellular ROS visualization and quantification were acquired by using a laser scanning confocal microscopy. Apoptosis was measured using a propidium iodide (PI) apoptosis detection kit by flow cytometry. Activation of caspases (caspase-3, caspase-8, and caspase-9) was evaluated respectively using GloMax luminescence detector and Caspase-Glo 3,8,9 assay kits. Loss of mitochondrial membrane potential was observed by microscopy using JC-1 dye. Quantitative real-time PCR analysis was employed to detect the expression of protein associated with cell death. Results: JR6 remarkably inhibited growth in human bladder cancer EJ cells by decreasing cell proliferation, reduced the SOD activity, increased the content of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and induced apoptosis. Activation of caspase-8, caspase-9, and the subsequent activation of caspase-3 indicated that JR6 may be inducing intrinsic and extrinsic apoptosis pathways. Caspase-3, caspase-8, and caspase-9 inhibition rendered this extract ineffective, thus JR6-induced apoptosis is caspase-dependent. JR6 also disrupted the mitochondrial membrane potential (Δψm) and unregulated the Bax and p53 expressions in EJ cells. Conclusion: These observations suggest that JR6 induce apoptosis through caspase-dependent pathway in human bladder cancer EJ cells, emphasizing the importance of this traditional medicine and thus presents a potential novel alternative to bladder cancer therapy. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]