Glycyrrhizic acid (GA), a triterpenoid saponin glycoside alleviates ultraviolet-B irradiation-induced photoaging in human dermal fibroblasts

Glycyrrhizic acid (GA), a triterpenoid saponin glycoside from the roots and rhizomes of licorice is used in traditional and modern medicine for the treatment of numerous medical conditions including skin diseases and beauty care product. In the present study, we investigated the effect of GA against ultraviolet B (UVB) irradiation-induced photoaging in human dermal fibroblasts (HDFs) and its possible mechanism of action. HDFs were subjected to photoaging by sub-toxic dose of UVB (10 mj/cm(2)) irradiation. Cell viability, matrix metalloproteinase 1 (MMP1), pro-collagen 1, cellular and nuclear morphology, cell cycle, intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS), caspase 3 and hyaluronidase inhibition assays were performed. Western blotting was used to evaluate the expression of NF-kappa B (NF-κB) and cytochrome-C proteins. GA treatment significantly inhibited photoaging. It achieved this by reducing ROS, NF-κB, cytochrome c, caspase 3 levels and inhibiting hyaluronidase enzyme. The main mechanism seems to be, most likely by blocking MMP1 activation by modulating NF-κB signaling. These findings may be useful for development of natural and safe photoprotective agents against UVB irradiation.     

Dual effect of formycin a upon the hydrolysis of phosphoinositides in perifused pancreatic islets

Formycin A (1.0 mM) caused a rapid, sustained and rapidly reversible inhibition of effluent radioactivity in rat pancreatic islets prelabelled with myo-[2-³H]inositol and perifused in the presence of 8.3 mM -glucose. This coincided with a progressive decrease in islet ATP content and transient inhibition of insulin release. Theraafter, however, formycin A increased glucose-induced insulin release. Moreover, in islets that were preincubated with myo-[2-³H]inositol and then exposed during perifusion to a rise in -glucose concentration from 2.8 to 16.7 mM, the release of insulin and ³H fractional outflow rate at both the low and high hexose concentrations were much higher when both the preincubation and perifusion were conducted in the presence, rather than absence, of formycin A. It is concluded that formycin A first inhibits and later enhances both the hydrolysis of phosphoinositides and release of insulin, these effects being possibly related to changes in the islet cell content of adenosine and/or formycin A triphosphates.     

The Invadopodia Scaffold Protein Tks5 Is Required for the Growth of Human Breast Cancer Cells In Vitro and In Vivo

The ability of cancer cells to invade underlies metastatic progression. One mechanism by which cancer cells can become invasive is through the formation of structures called invadopodia, which are dynamic, actin-rich membrane protrusions that are sites of focal extracellular matrix degradation. While there is a growing consensus that invadopodia are instrumental in tumor metastasis, less is known about whether they are involved in tumor growth, particularly in vivo. The adaptor protein Tks5 is an obligate component of invadopodia, and is linked molecularly to both actin-remodeling proteins and pericellular proteases. Tks5 appears to localize exclusively to invadopodia in cancer cells, and in vitro studies have demonstrated its critical requirement for the invasive nature of these cells, making it an ideal surrogate to investigate the role of invadopodia in vivo. In this study, we examined how Tks5 contributes to human breast cancer progression. We used immunohistochemistry and RNA sequencing data to evaluate Tks5 expression in clinical samples, and we characterized the role of Tks5 in breast cancer progression using RNA interference and orthotopic implantation in SCID-Beige mice. We found that Tks5 is expressed to high levels in approximately 50% of primary invasive breast cancers. Furthermore, high expression was correlated with poor outcome, particularly in those patients with late relapse of stage I/II disease. Knockdown of Tks5 expression in breast cancer cells resulted in decreased growth, both in 3D in vitro cultures and in vivo. Moreover, our data also suggest that Tks5 is important for the integrity and permeability of the tumor vasculature. Together, this work establishes an important role for Tks5 in tumor growth in vivo, and suggests that invadopodia may play broad roles in tumor progression.     

A Newton Cooperative Genetic Algorithm Method for In Silico Optimization of Metabolic Pathway Production

This paper presents an in silico optimization method of metabolic pathway production. The metabolic pathway can be represented by a mathematical model known as the generalized mass action model, which leads to a complex nonlinear equations system. The optimization process becomes difficult when steady state and the constraints of the components in the metabolic pathway are involved. To deal with this situation, this paper presents an in silico optimization method, namely the Newton Cooperative Genetic Algorithm (NCGA). The NCGA used Newton method in dealing with the metabolic pathway, and then integrated genetic algorithm and cooperative co-evolutionary algorithm. The proposed method was experimentally applied on the benchmark metabolic pathways, and the results showed that the NCGA achieved better results compared to the existing methods.     

Multiple crystallization as a potential strategy for efficient recovery of succinic acid following fermentation with immobilized cells

Bioprocess and Biosystems Engineering - This study aimed to enhance the crystallizability of bio-based succinic acid for its efficient recovery while maintaining the end product at the highest...     

Technical and economic potentials of the unconventional extruded dried Arabic bread wastes in broilers diets

Food waste is one of the major global challenges that have adverse socioeconomic and environmental impacts. Therefore, studying food waste utilization potentials and minimizing its negative consequences becomes imperative. This study aims to assess the technical and economic potentials of substituting corn with unconventional extruded dried Arabic Bread waste (EDABW) in broilers’ diets, in terms of broilers’ performance, carcass characteristic, economic net returns, and income over feed cost (IOFC). One hundred eighty unsexed one-day-old broiler birds of Ross breed were distributed randomly in six treatments (0, 20, 40, 60, 80, and 100% EDABW group) of isocaloric and isonitrogenous diets in a completely randomized design with six replicated (5 chicks/replicate). The investigated traits were broilers’ performance (live body weight, total feed intake, total feed conversion ratio, and total weight gain. Other traits such as carcass weight, abdominal fat, edible offal (liver, heart, and gizzard), eviscerated (breast muscles, drum and thigh muscles, and wings) were weighed and expressed based on a live body weight. Results showed that the 20% replacement level of corn with EDABW generated the highest increase in the live body weight and the eviscerated carcass at about 4.24% g and 4.90%, respectively. On the other hand, the economic analysis showed potential reductions in the broilers’ diet cost and the total broilers' production cost as the levels of corn substitution with by unconventional EDABW increased. The reductions were estimated at 5.1%, 6.3%, 8.4%, 9.3%, and 9.9% at substitution levels of 20%, 40%, 60%, 80%, and 100%, respectively as compared to the control diet. The results also showed a potential increase in the net economic returns of broiler meat as the increase in substitution levels ranged between 3.5–06.8% and 4.3–8.3% as compared to the control diets using the average retail and wholesale prices of broiler meats, respectively. In addition, the maximum IOFC was estimated potentially at a 20% substitution level of corn with EDABW. Conclusively, the study results show promising technical and economic potentials for unconventional EDABW in broilers’ diets that could lead to a thriving industry of unconventional broilers’ diets with high net economic returns and maximum IOFC.     

Uptake and metabolism of d‐glucose in isolated acinar and ductal cells from rat submandibular glands

The present study deals with the possible effects of selected environmental agents upon the uptake and metabolism of d ‐glucose in isolated acinar and ductal cells from the rat submandibular salivary gland. In acinar cells, the uptake of d ‐[U‐¹⁴C]glucose and its non‐metabolised analogue 3‐O‐[¹⁴C‐methyl]‐d ‐glucose was not affected significantly by phloridzin (0.1 mM) or substitution of extracellular NaCl (115 mM) by an equimolar amount of CsCl, whilst cytochalasin B (20 μM) decreased significantly such an uptake. In ductal cells, both phloridzin and cytochalasin B decreased the uptake of d ‐glucose and 3‐O‐methyl‐d ‐glucose. Although the intracellular space was comparable in acinar and ductal cells, the catabolism of d ‐glucose (2.8 or 8.3 mM) was two to four times higher in ductal cells than in acinar cells. Phloridzin (0.1 mM), ouabain (1.0 mM) and cytochalasin B (20 μM) all impaired d ‐glucose catabolism in ductal cells. Such was also the case in ductal cells incubated in the absence of extracellular Ca²⁺ or in media in which NaCl was substituted by CsCl. It is proposed that the ductal cells in the rat submandibular gland are equipped with several systems mediating the insulin‐sensitive, cytochalasin B‐sensitive and phloridzin‐sensitive transport of d ‐glucose across the plasma membrane. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.