Psoralen attenuates bleomycin‐induced pulmonary fibrosis in mice through inhibiting myofibroblast activation and collagen deposition

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a progressive disease characterized by excessive deposition of extracellular matrix (ECM) and chronic inflammation with limited therapeutic options. Psoralen, a major active component extracted from Psoralea corylifolia L. seed, has several biological effects. However, the role of psoralen in IPF is still unclear. Here, we hypothesized that psoralen played an essential role in IPF in the inhibition of fibroblast proliferation and inflammatory response. A murine model of IPF was established by injecting bleomycin (BLM) intratracheally, and psoralen was administered for 14 days from the 7^th to 21^st day after BLM injection. Our results demonstrated that psoralen treatment reduced body weight loss and improved the survival rate of mice with IPF. Histological and immunofluorescent examination showed that psoralen alleviated BLM‐induced lung parenchymal inflammatory and fibrotic alteration. Furthermore, psoralen inhibited proliferation and collagen synthesis of mouse fibroblasts and partially reversed BLM‐induced expression of α‐smooth muscle actin at both the tissue and cell level. Moreover, psoralen decreased the expression of transforming growth factor‐β1, interleukin‐1β, and tumor necrosis factor‐α in the lungs of BLM‐stimulated mice. Our results reveale for the first time that psoralen exerts therapeutic effects against IPF in a BLM‐induced murine model.     

广东特有国家保护植物丹霞梧桐资源调查与保护研究

通过对文献、网络资源数据库(植物志、标本平台、图像库等)和专著分析考证,结合全部产地的野外实地考察,对国家II级重点保护野生植物丹霞梧桐(Firmiana danxiaensis)的分类学地位与形态特征、产地与生境、标本记录、研究进展及致危因素等进行综述,以期为该物种的保护提供科学依据。自1986年在广东仁化丹霞山采到模式标本和1987年命名丹霞梧桐以来,至今已过去30多年,其记录范围从最初的仁化县丹霞山,2014年扩展到南雄市全安镇和古市镇,再到2019年新记录的英德市英城镇和横石塘镇,生境也从丹霞地貌特有扩展至与石灰岩地貌共有。丹霞梧桐种群的保护需综合就地保护、迁地保护,以及加强科学研究等措施。     

《本草图经》药物杜衡的本草考证

研究《本草图经》中记载的中药杜衡,通过查阅历代书籍和现代文献记载,对其名称、形态、地理分布、功效、药图进行考证,探究其原植物品种。结果表明,《本草图经》中记载的杜衡其原植物可能包含马兜铃科细辛属植物杜衡(Asarum forbesii Maxim)和小叶马蹄香(Asarum ichangense C. Y. Cheng et C. S. Yang)两种,该结果可为充分认识中药杜衡的基原植物提供新的佐证,为中药杜衡的临床应用提供参考。     

Combination of diethyldithiocarbamate with 12-O-tetradecanoyl phorbol-13-acetate inhibits the growth of human myeloid leukemia HL-60 cells in vitro and in xenograft model

ABSTRACT

12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA), is a major active constituent of the seed oil of Croton tiglium L., has pharmacological activity for the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia patients. Diethyldithiocarbamate (DTC) is a potent inhibitor of NF-κB show activity of anticancer. In this study, we determined the effect of DTC and TPA in combination on HL-60 cells cultured in vitro and in vivo. In this study, we have shown that DTC and TPA synergistically inhibited the growth of HL-60 cells and strongly induced apoptosis in the cells. Mechanistic studies showed that the combined effects of DTC and TPA were associated with a decrease in Bcl-2. The animal experiment showed that the combination of DTC and TPA more potently inhibited the growth of HL-60 tumors than either agent alone. Our results indicate that the administration of TPA and DTC in combination may be an effective strategy for inhibiting the growth of acute myeloid leukemia cells.     

Eukaryotic translation initiation factor 3 subunit b is a novel oncogenic factor in prostate cancer

Mammalian Genome - Prostate cancer, the second most common cancer among male adults, affects millions globally. We sought to investigate the expression and contribution of Eukaryotic translation...     

Requirements for human embryonic stem cells

‘Requirements for Human Embryonic Stem Cells’ is the first set of guidelines on human embryonic stem cells in China, jointly drafted and agreed upon by experts from the Chinese Society for Stem Cell Research. This standard specifies the technical requirements, test methods, test regulations, instructions for use, labelling requirements, packaging requirements, storage requirements and transportation requirements for human embryonic stem cells, which is applicable to the quality control for human embryonic stem cells. It was originally released by the China Society for Cell Biology on 26 February 2019 and was further revised on 30 April 2020. We hope that publication of these guidelines will promote institutional establishment, acceptance and execution of proper protocols, and accelerate the international standardization of human embryonic stem cells for applications.     

The mechanism of Single strand binding protein–RecG binding: Implications for SSB interactome function

The Escherichia coli single‐strand DNA binding protein (SSB) is essential to viability where it functions to regulate SSB interactome function. Here it binds to single‐stranded DNA and to target proteins that comprise the interactome. The region of SSB that links these two essential protein functions is the intrinsically disordered linker. Key to linker function is the presence of three, conserved PXXP motifs that mediate binding to oligosaccharide‐oligonucleotide binding folds (OB‐fold) present in SSB and its interactome partners. Not surprisingly, partner OB‐fold deletions eliminate SSB binding. Furthermore, single point mutations in either the PXXP motifs or, in the RecG OB‐fold, obliterate SSB binding. The data also demonstrate that, and in contrast to the view currently held in the field, the C‐terminal acidic tip of SSB is not required for interactome partner binding. Instead, we propose the tip has two roles. First, and consistent with the proposal of Dixon, to regulate the structure of the C‐terminal domain in a biologically active conformation that prevents linkers from binding to SSB OB‐folds until this interaction is required. Second, as a secondary binding domain. Finally, as OB‐folds are present in SSB and many of its partners, we present the SSB interactome as the first family of OB‐fold genome guardians identified in prokaryotes.     

不同时期根施钾肥对沿黄灌区‘骏枣’光合特性及其产量和品质的影响

在沿黄灌区选择8年生‘骏枣’植株,以不施钾肥作为对照,分别在果树开花期、幼果期、果实膨大期、转色期每株沟施300 g硫酸钾,测定各处理果实品质、产量、叶片光合以及荧光参数的变化,以明确沿黄灌区‘骏枣’的最佳施钾时期,为制定枣树合理施肥措施提供理论依据。结果表明:(1)与对照相比,施用钾肥可促进骏枣的光合作用、改善果实品质,且不同生育期效应不同,并以果实膨大期施用钾肥对提高骏枣果实品质、产量、叶片光合效果最为显著。(2)果实膨大期施用钾肥后,‘骏枣’的果实纵径、横径、果形指数、单果重、单株产量比对照分别显著提高了22.64%、39.33%、13.62%、19.52%和19.58%,果实维生素C(Vc)、可溶性糖和果糖的含量、糖酸比分别比对照显著提高了37.98%、22.82%、31.37%和29.95%,叶片叶绿素含量、净光合速率(P_n)、气孔导度(G_s)和蒸腾速率(T_r)比对照分别显著提高了28.91%、38.44%、36.75%和27.25%,叶片初始荧光(F_o)、最大荧光(F_m)、电子传递速率(ETR)比对照分别显著提高了28.18%、29.15%和37.75%,而胞间CO _2浓度(C_i)和裂果率在果实膨大期达到最低值,比对照分别显著降低了28.34%和35.50%。研究发现,在‘骏枣’果实膨大期株施300 g钾肥,可显著增加植株叶片叶绿素含量、光合作用效率和光能吸收、电子传递效率,提高树体光合能力,显著降低裂果率,有效改善骏枣果实外在和内在品质,显著提高单株产量。