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Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is one abnormal buildup of fat within the liver, independent of excessive alcohol intake. In type 2 diabetes, the presence of NAFLD can exacerbate chronic kidney diseases and mortality in patients. Hepatocyte nuclear factor 1 homeobox A (HNF1A) predominantly expressed in the liver, owns one crucial role in liver development, function and tumorigenesis. However, the precise regulatory role of HNF1A on the progression of type 2 diabetes combined with NAFLD keep dimness. This investigation uncovered that HNF1A levels, both in protein and mRNA expressions, were elevated in high-fat diet plus hyperglycemia (HFG) mice. Furthermore, liver steatosis was strengthened in the HFG group, which was mitigated following the HNF1A inhibition. Knockdown of HNF1A ameliorated glucose and lipid metabolism disorders in HFG mice. Lastly, the study observed an stimulation of the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (AKT)/mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway in HFG mice, but this change was neutralized uponHNF1A silencing. In conclusion, knockdown of HNF1A improved type 2 diabetes combined with NAFLD, as well as disorders in glucose and lipid metabolism, and retarded the PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway. These finding demonstrated that HNF1A may be one serviceable target for ameliorating type 2 diabetes combined with NAFLD.

Good's buffers have been widely applied in cell/organ culture over the past half a century as biocompatible pH stabilizers. However, the emergence of severe adverse effects, such as cellular uptake, lysosomal autophagic activation, and visible light-induced cytotoxicity, raises serious questions over its biocompatibility while underlying mechanism was unclear. Here we report that riboflavin (RF, component of cell culture medium) generates 1O2, ·OH, and O2•- under visible light exposure during regular cell manipulation. These short half-life reactive oxygen species (ROS) react with tertiary amine groups of HEPES, producing 106.6 μM of H2O2. Orders of magnitude elevated half-life of ROS in the medium caused severe cytotoxicity and systematic disorder of normal cell functions. We have further designed and validated zwitterionic betaines as the new generation biocompatible organic pH buffers, which is able to completely avoid the adverse effects that found on HEPES and derivate Good's buffers. These findings may also open a new avenue for zwitterionic betaine based materials for biomedical applications.

Fluopyram, a SDH inhibitor fungicide, is widely used in agriculture to control fungi and nematodes. However, fluopyram has been proved toxic that caused damage to organs through oxidative stress. The development of natural extracts that can reduce oxidative damage is a promising method. Lentinan is isolated from Lentinus edodes and has been verified its antioxidant activity. In this study, Caenorhabditis elegans was used to evaluate the protective effects of lentinan against fluopyram-induced toxicity and the possible mechanisms. Results showed that lentinan pretreatment notably increased the survival rate of N2 nematodes by 15.0 % and extended the lifespan by 91.5 %, compared with the fluopyram treatment. Lentinan pretreatment reverted the inhibition of the locomotion and reproduction of C. elegans under the fluopyram stress. In addition, lentinan pretreatment significantly decreased the contents of ROS and MDA in N2 nematodes. Moreover, pretreated with lentinan significantly recovered the decreased activities of CAT, SOD, GST and SDH induced by fluopyram. Lentinan pretreatment enhanced the mRNA levels of daf-16 and skn-1 and their downstream genes in the nematodes compared with the fluopyram group. In daf-16 and skn-1 mutants, the lifespan, ROS and related genes expression were not significantly changed in lentinan pretreatment. Pretreated with lentinan significantly enhanced the fluorescence intensity of SOD-3::GFP and GST-4::GFP, and promoted the nuclear translocation of DAF-16 and SKN-1 under the fluopyram stress. In summary, these findings indicated that lentinan protected C. elegans from fluopyram-induced toxicity via DAF-16 and SKN-1.

Fluopimomide is a new pesticide that is widely applied in agriculture; however, the effects and molecular mechanisms of fluopimomide in inhibiting nematode reproduction remain unknown. In this study, the effects of fluopimomide on the development and infection of Meloidogyne incognita and the reproductive toxicity in Caenorhabditis elegans were evaluated. Results showed that, in comparison to inoculated control, fluopimomide at 0.33, 0.67, and 1.0 mg/kg soil significantly (p < 0.05) delayed M. incognita development and decreased the reproduction in pot experiments. Fluopimomide notably reduced the galls index with a control effect of 78.6%, 67.9%, and 50.0%, respectively. In addition, a dose–response relationship existed between the brood size and germ cell number of C. elegans and fluopimomide concentrations. Compared with the control group, fluopimomide at 1.0 and 5.0 mg/L notably (p < 0.001) increased the number of cell corpses per gonad in the N2 strain of C. elegans by 8.8- and 14.4-fold, respectively. The number of cell corpses per gonad was similar between the fluopimomide treated worms and the control group in mutants of ced-3, ced-4, and ced-9. Further evidence revealed fluopimomide significantly enhanced the expression of cep-1, egl-1, and clk-2, while no obvious effects were observed in their mutants. Taken together, these results indicated that fluopimomide inflicted DNA damage and induced the core apoptosis pathway caused by germ-cell apoptosis, leading to the reduction of the brood size of C. elegans.

A natural extract from Paecilomyces variotii (P. variotii extract, PVE), an endophytic fungus, has been used widely to improve agricultural crop performance and control multiple plant pathogens. Most recent studies focused on its application as a plant growth promoter, while relatively few studies have been reported on the antioxidant potential in vivo and the underlying mechanism. The present study was designed to determine the antioxidant activities of PVE and its mechanisms using Caenorhabditis elegans. Results showed that, compared to the solvent control, PVE at 1.0, 10 and 100 ng/mL significantly extended the lifespan of C. elegans by 36.60%, 59.80% and 53.30%, respectively. PVE at 10 ng/mL consistently promoted nematodes growth, but all treatments did not influence nematode fecundity, locomotion behavior, and pharyngeal pumping. Furthermore, PVE at the three tested concentrations significantly reduced accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), lipofuscin, lipid and malondialdehyde (MDA) content, meanwhile significantly promoted activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and glutathione S-transferase (GST) in the nematodes. Compared with the solvent control, PVE up-regulated gene expression of skn-1, mev-1, sod-3, and daf-2, but significantly down-regulated the expression of nhr-49 and daf-16. Further evidence revealed that PVE at the three concentrations significantly promoted nuclear localization of SKN-1, but not affected that of DAF-16, indicating the complex roles of DAF-16 and SKN-1 in stress resistance and longevity regulation. Overall, our results demonstrated that SKN-1 played a critical role in increasing lifespan of C. elegans and protecting the nematodes from oxidative stress, independent of DAF-16.

Abstract The aim of this article is to consider the semi-linear fractional system with Sobolev exponents q = n + α n − β $q = \frac{{n + \alpha}}{{n - \beta}}$ and p = n + β n − α $p = \frac{{n + \beta}}{{n - \alpha}}$ ( α ≠ β $\alpha \ne\beta$ ): { ( − Δ ) α / 2 u ( x ) = k ( x ) v q ( x ) + f ( v ( x ) ) , ( − Δ ) β / 2 v ( x ) = j ( x ) u p ( x ) + g ( u ( x ) ) , $$\left \{ \textstyle\begin{array}{l} {( - \Delta)^{\alpha/2}}u(x) = k(x){v^{q}}(x) + f(v(x)),\\ {( - \Delta)^{\beta/2}}v(x) = j(x){u^{p}}(x) + g(u(x)), \end{array}\displaystyle \right . $$ where 0 < α , β < 2 $0 < \alpha, \beta < 2$ . We first establish two maximum principles for narrow regions in the ball and out of the ball by the iteration technique, respectively. Based on these principles, we use the direct method of moving spheres to prove the non-existence of positive solutions to the above system in the whole space and bounded star-shaped domain. As a consequence, the monotonic decreasing properties of W ( x ) = | x | n − α 2 u ( x ) $W(x) = { \vert x \vert ^{\frac{{n - \alpha}}{2}}}u(x)$ and W 1 ( x ) = | x | n − β 2 v ( x ) ${W_{1}}(x) = { \vert x \vert ^{\frac{{n - \beta}}{2}}}v(x)$ along the radial direction in the whole space are obtained.

Southern root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne incognita) is an obligate, sedentary endoparasite of more than 3000 plant species, that causes heavy economic losses and limit the development of protected agriculture of China. As a biological pesticide, emamectin benzoate has effectively prevented lepidopteran pests; however, its efficacy to control M. incognita remains unknown. The purpose of the present study was to test soil application of emamectin benzoate for management of M. incognita in laboratory, greenhouse and field trials. Laboratory results showed that emamectin benzoate exhibited high toxicity to M. incognita, with LC50 and LC90 values 3.59 and 18.20 mg L(-1), respectively. In greenhouse tests, emamectin benzoate soil application offered good efficacy against M. incognita while maintaining excellent plant growth. In field trials, emamectin benzoate provided control efficacy against M. incognita and resulted in increased tomato yields. Compared with the untreated control, there was a 36.5% to 81.3% yield increase obtained from all treatments and the highest yield was received from the highest rate of emamectin benzoate. The results confirmed that emamectin benzoate has enormous potential for the control of M. incognita in tomato production in China.

Abstract Exploring a non-destructive and rapid evaluation method for precious ancient ceramic relics is of significant importance. Currently, there are countless monochrome porcelain fragments awaiting measurement and categorization. Various instruments such as XRF, XRD, SEM, OM, and thermoluminescence dating have been extensively utilized by numerous researchers to study ancient ceramics. However, these techniques pose challenges in reliably identifying monochrome porcelain fragments from the same kiln with similar appearance, content, and microstructure due to their limitations. To address this issue, this study presents an acoustic measurement system that utilizes audible frequencies to non-destructively evaluate monochrome porcelain fragments. The proposed method enables the extraction of parameters related to time domain analysis (e.g., group delay), frequency domain analysis (e.g., resonance), and sound loss characteristics of these fragments. This non-destructive and efficient technology for detecting acoustic characteristics of monochrome porcelain fragments presented in this work clarifies the fundamental principles governing the interaction between sound waves and ancient ceramic fragments while providing a completely non-destructive and highly efficient method for classifying and restoring valuable solid cultural heritages like stone, jade, bronze etc. Moreover, this approach can also be applied for non-destructive testing of elastic modulus in advanced ceramic devices including detecting small cracks, deterioration effects due to aging as well as other defects.

Abstract The central nervous system has been implicated in the age-induced reduction in adipose tissue lipolysis. However, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Here, we show the expression of SLC7A14 is reduced in proopiomelanocortin (POMC) neurons of aged mice. Overexpression of SLC7A14 in POMC neurons alleviates the aging-reduced lipolysis, whereas SLC7A14 deletion mimics the age-induced lipolysis impairment. Metabolomics analysis reveals that POMC SLC7A14 increased taurochenodeoxycholic acid (TCDCA) content, which mediates the SLC7A14 knockout- or age-induced WAT lipolysis impairment. Furthermore, SLC7A14-increased TCDCA content is dependent on intestinal apical sodium-dependent bile acid transporter (ASBT), which is regulated by intestinal sympathetic afferent nerves. Finally, SLC7A14 regulates the intestinal sympathetic afferent nerves by inhibiting mTORC1 signaling through inhibiting TSC1 phosphorylation. Collectively, our study suggests the function for central SLC7A14 and an upstream mechanism for the mTORC1 signaling pathway. Moreover, our data provides insights into the brain–gut–adipose tissue crosstalk in age-induced lipolysis impairment.

Abstract Addressing the critical need for swift and precise nutritional profiling in healthcare and in food industry, this study pioneers the integration of vision‐language models (VLMs) with chemical analysis techniques. A cutting‐edge VLM is unveiled, utilizing the expansive UMDFood‐90k database, to significantly improve the speed and accuracy of nutrient estimation processes. Demonstrating a macro‐AUCROC of 0.921 for lipid quantification, the model exhibits less than 10% variance compared to traditional chemical analyses for over 82% of the analyzed food items. This innovative approach not only accelerates nutritional screening by 36.9% when tested amongst students but also sets a new benchmark in the precision of nutritional data compilation. This research marks a substantial leap forward in food science, employing a blend of advanced computational models and chemical validation to offer a rapid, high‐throughput solution for nutritional analysis.

Abstract Maintaining food safety and quality is critical for public health and food security. Conventional food preservation methods, such as pasteurization and dehydration, often change the overall organoleptic quality of the food products. Herein, we demonstrate a method that affects only a thin surface layer of the food, using beef as a model. In this method, Joule heating is generated by applying high electric power to a carbon substrate in ~2000 K. The beef surface in direct contact with the heating substrate is subjected to ultra-high temperature flash heating, leading to the formation of a microbe-inactivated, dehydrated layer of ~100 µm in thickness. Aerobic mesophilic bacteria, Enterobacteriaceae, yeast and mold on the treated samples are inactivated to a level below the detection limit and remained low during room temperature storage of 5 days. Meanwhile, the product quality, including visual appearance, texture, and nutrient level of the beef, remains mostly unchanged. In contrast, microorganisms grow rapidly on the untreated control samples, along with a rapid deterioration of the meat quality. This method might serve as a promising preservation technology for securing food safety and quality.

Researches indicate miR-3200 is closely related to tumorigenesis, However, the role of miR-3200 in human hepatocarcinogenesis is still unclear. In this study, we clearly demonstrate that miR-3200 accelerates the growth of liver cancer cells in vivo and in vitro. Obviously, these findings are noteworthy that miR-3200 affects the transcriptional regulation for several genes, including DSP，BABAM2, Rab7A,SQSTM1,PRKAG2,CDK1,ABCE1,BECN1,PTEN,UPRT. And miR-3200 affects the transcriptional ability of several genes, such as, upregulating CADPS, DSP,FBXO32, PPCA,SGK1, PATXN7L1, PLK2,ITGB5,FZD3,HOXC8,HSPA1A,C-Myc,CyclnD1,CyclinE,PCNA and down –regulating SUV39H1, MYO1G, OLFML3, CBX5, PPDE2A, HOXA7, RAD54L, CDC45,SHMT7,MAD2L1,P27,IQGAP3,PTEN,P57,SCAMP3,etc...On the other hand, it is obvious that miR-3200 affects the translational ability of several genes, such as, upregulating GNS,UPRT,EIFAD,YOS1,SGK1,K-Ras,PKM2,C-myc,Pim1,CyclinD1,mTOR,erbB-2,CyclinE,PCNA,RRAS,ARAF,RAPH1,etc.. and down-regulating KDM2A, AATF, TMM17B, RAB8B, MYO1G,P21WAF1/Cip1,GADD45,PTEN,P27,P18,P57,SERBP1,RPL34,UFD1,Bax,ANXA6,GSK3β. Strikingly, miR-3200 affects some signaling pathway in liver cancer, including carbon metabolism signaling pathway, DNA replication pathway, FoxO signaling pathway, Hippo signaling pathway, serine and threonine metabolism signaling pathway, mTOR signaling pathway, Fatty acid biosynthesis signaling pathway, carcinogenesis-receptor activation signaling pathway, autophagy signaling pathway. Furthermore, our results suggest that miR-3200 enhances expression of RAB7A, and then Rab7A regulates the carcinogenic function of miR-3200 by increasing telomere remodeling in human liver cancer. These results are of great significance for the prevention and treatment of human liver cancer.

miRNA is a noncoding RNA found in recent years and more than one third of human genes are the target of miRNAs. miR-624, located on human chromosome 14, is associated with tumorigenesis. However, the role of miR-624 in human hepatocarcinogenesis is still unclear. Herein, our results indicate that miR-624 accelerates the growth of liver cancer cells in vivo and in vitro. Moreover, the modification distribution of H3K9me1 on chromosomes is different between rLV group and rLV-miR-624 group. miR-624 affects epigenetic regulation of several genes in human liver cancer cells, such as RAB21, SMARCD3, MAPK6,PRRX1, ZFHX3, EMC3 (TMEM111). Furthermore, miR-624 affects transcriptome of some genes in liver cancer, including RAB21， UBE2N， PPP1CC，KPNA3， RAB7A，CPEB2,KLF4， MARK2， JUN， ARF6， TMEM39A. On the other hand, miR-624 affects proteome of several genes in liver cancer, such as, RBM5,PTK2, KDM2A,POLR2H, POLR2G,CDK6,KIF15,CUL2,FKBP2,ErbB-3,JUN, PKM2, CyclinE,PLK1, mTOR, PPARγ, Rab7A,ARAF, UPF3B ，PTEN, SUZ12, GADD45, H3.3, CUL5, ARF6,EMC3,ATG4B,ATG14,CALR. Interestingly, miR-624 affects the RAB7A interaction network in liver cancer cells, involving in CLTC，ITGB1，HNRNPU， DARS1， RPS16， CTPS1，H3–3B，JUN,MYH10， CUL5， CPSF7. Strikingly, excessive MEC3 abrogates the carcinogenic functions of miR-624. Importantly, our findings indicate that miR-624 affects some signaling pathway in liver cancer, including Wnt signaling pathway，Hippo signaling pathway，mTOR signaling pathway, Ras signaling pathway，MAPK signaling pathway，PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, erbB signaling pathway. These results provide a basis for the treatment of human liver cancer.

Due to the physicochemical properties of salt swelling and collapsibility, the potential geological hazards threaten the large-scale infrastructure and residential areas in the saline-soil region. Geodetic imaging and dynamic monitoring of the spatiotemporal evolution process of saline soil are vital to detect the potential geological hazards in a vast area. Therefore, this paper presents a coupled deformation model synthesizing environmental factors and trigonometric function model for estimating the time-series InSAR deformation and interpreting the dynamic evolutionary mechanism of the saline mudflat. To demonstrate the advantages of the proposed model, the sulphate saline mudflat is selected as the study area, which is traversed by the Tehran-Isfahan high-speed railway in Howz-e-Soltan Salt Lake, Qom, Iran. Moreover, 259 interconnecting interferograms were selected for the time-series InSAR estimation, composed of 87 Sentinel-1A images obtained from October 2014 through December 2018. Then, the time-series deformations, including the annual deformation velocity and the accumulated deformation, are extracted by the original estimation, polynomial, trigonometric and environmental models. The comparison results show that the environmental model's RMSEs (root-mean-square errors) are smaller than others. It should be noted that the linear deformation, periodic oscillation, and deformation derived from the environmental factors (i.e., precipitation and temperature) are extracted by the environmental model. Furthermore, the dynamic evolutionary mechanism of the saline mudflat is interpreted according to the physicochemical properties of sulphate/carbonate saline soil. The results derived from the environmental model suggested that the saline-soil deformation is directly related with the environmental changes: rapid collapsibility occurs when the precipitation increases from September to the next May, while uplift due to the salt swelling in the dry and rainless season from May to September every year. Our findings provide an opportunity to detect, prevent and control the potential geological hazards in saline mudflats.

Abstract Cultural heritage identity management is the most basic and important work in the process of cultural heritage protection. It is of great significance to provide a unique and identifiable digital identity for ancient ceramics. At present, the identification information of ancient ceramics is mainly composed of external visual characteristics, and there is no report on feature identification method that can reflect the properties of ancient ceramics. Audible sound signals not only have advantages in non-destructive testing, but also can be used as voiceprint information to identify, monitor and analyze ancient ceramics. In this paper, seven ancient ceramics and 12 similar modern ceramic cups are taken as research objects, and an acoustic identifier (AID) is constructed. We put forward a reliable acoustic identification method for ancient ceramics, and established a digital code of acoustic characteristics of ancient ceramics. The results show that audible sound waves can reflect the attribute information of ancient ceramics. Sufficient acoustic data combined with deep learning can not only accurately match the identity of ancient ceramics, but also detect the real-time identity information of ancient ceramics, and make a comparative analysis of its cracks and whether it has caused damage. This method can provide a variety of practical applications for audible signal feature recognition technology in the exhibition, protection, trading, recognition and safety management of ancient ceramics and other cultural relics.

IntroductionPseudorabies virus (PRV) is a linear DNA virus with a double-stranded structure, capable of infecting a diverse array of animal species, including humans. This study sought to ascertain the seroprevalence of Pseudorabies Virus (PRV) in China by conducting a comprehensive collection of blood samples from 16 provinces over the course of 2022.MethodsThe presence of PRV gE antibodies was detected through the utilization of an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) technique. Logistic regression analysis was conducted to identify potential related factors associated with the serologic status of PRV gE at the animal level. Additionally, the SaTScan 10.1 software was used to analyze the spatial and temporal clusters of PRV gE seroprevalence.ResultsA comprehensive collection of 161,880 samples was conducted, encompassing 556 swine farms throughout the country. The analysis revealed that the seroprevalence of PRV gE antibodies was 12.36% (95% confidence interval [CI], 12.20% to 12.52%) at the individual animal level. However, at the swine farm level, the seroprevalence was considerably higher, reaching 46.22% (95% CI, 42.08% to 50.37%). Related factors for PRV infection at the farm level included the geographic distribution of farms and seasonal variables. Moreover, five distinct high seroprevalence clusters of PRV gE were identified across China, with the peak prevalence observed during the months of April through June 2022.ConclusionOur findings serve as a valuable addition to existing research on the seroprevalence, related factors, and temporal clustering of PRV gE in China. Furthermore, our study provides a reference point for the development of effective strategies for the prevention and control of pseudorabies and wild virus outbreaks.

Abstract An important role for liver in the regulation of adipose tissue thermogenesis upon cold exposure has been suggested; however, the underlying mechanisms remain incompletely defined. Here, we identify elevated serum bradykinin levels in response to acute cold exposure in male mice. A bolus of anti-bradykinin antibodies reduces body temperature during acute cold exposure, whereas bradykinin has the opposite effect. We demonstrate that bradykinin induces brown adipose tissue thermogenesis and white adipose tissue browning, and bradykinin increases uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1) expression in adipose tissue. The bradykinin B2 receptor (B2R), adrenergic signaling and nitric oxide signaling are involved in regulating bradykinin-increased UCP1 expression. Moreover, acute cold exposure inhibits hepatic prolyl endopeptidase (PREP) activity, causing reduced liver bradykinin degradation and increased serum bradykinin levels. Finally, by blocking the breakdown of bradykinin, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs) increase serum bradykinin levels and induce brown adipose tissue thermogenesis and white adipose tissue browning via B2R. Collectively, our data provide new insights into the mechanisms underlying organ crosstalk in whole-body physiology control during cold exposure and also suggest bradykinin as a possible anti-obesity target.

Abstract In the field of cultural heritage protection, it is significant to establish a reliable ID (identifier) for valuable cultural and artistic items. At present, the identification of ancient cultural relics is mainly based on image information, such as pictures, 3D (three-dimensional) scanning, X-ray and CT (computed tomography) data. However, in many cases, it is impossible to identify whether slight damage, partial restorations, or ancient cultural relics have been replaced by fakes by using image information. In the era of digital duplication, more reliable identity information is urgently needed. The main technical challenge of an acoustic analysis system for ancient coins based on artificial intelligence technology is to find a non-destructive, fast and accurate identification method for ancient cultural relics. The recognition method includes two main modules: the artificial audio data sampling device and deep learning. In addition, this paper has completed the analysis of the vibration spectrum features of 19 ancient coins and realized the whole process of acoustic ID construction. The open-source platform Easy DL was used to analyze the multidimensional vibration spectrum curve feature extraction and identification. This method enables audio signal signature recognition technology to be applied in the display, preservation, transaction and safety management of ancient coins and other cultural relics.

African swine fever (ASF) is a devastating and economically significant infectious disease that has caused enormous losses in the commercial pig sector in China since 2018. The primary transmission routes of the African swine fever virus (ASFV), the causative agent of ASF, are direct pig-to-pig contact or indirect contact with virus-contaminated objects. While aerosol transmission of ASFV has been previously reported under experimental conditions, no reports have described it under field conditions. In this case study, aerosol-associated samples were collected over a monitoring period of 24 days in an ASFV-positive farm. A complete and clear chain of ASFV transmission through aerosols was observed: pigs in Room A on Day 0-aerosol in Room A on Day 6-dust of air outlets in Room A on Day 9-outdoor aerosols on Day 9-dust of air inlets in Room B on Day 15-aerosols/pigs in Room B on Day 21. Furthermore, a fluorescent powder experiment confirmed the transmission of dust from Room A to Room B. This study represents the first report providing evidence of aerosol transmission of ASFV under field conditions. Further research is needed to study the laws of aerosol transmission in ASFV and develop effective strategies such as air filtration or disinfection to create a low-risk environment with fresh air for pig herds.