Introduction: Amyloid-β (Aβ) peptides play a key role in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer disease and exert various toxic effects on neurons. Dietary phytochemicals are currently used as an adjuvant therapy to accelerate their therapeutic efficacy. Therefore, the present study was designed to investigate the effect of curcumin and its co-administration with piperine against Aβ42 induced cytotoxicity, fibril aggregation and oxidative damage in SH-SY5Y cells. Methods: The neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cells were cultured with different treatments of Aβ42, individual curcumin and piperine and combination of curcumin and piperine. Cell viability, Aβ fibril aggregation and oxidative damage such as lipid peroxidation, catalase and glutathione were assessed. The abilities of curcumin and its combination, piperine to scavenge free radicals and to inhibit Aβ aggregation and β-sheeted formation were further assessed. Results: Curcumin and piperine preserves cell viability, which is decreased by Aβ, indicate that curcumin protects Aβ-induced neuronal damage. Under aggregating conditions in vitro, curcumin and piperine inhibited aggregation as well as disaggregated fibrillar Aβ42, indicating favorable stoichiometry for inhibition. Results also showed that curcumin and piperine as a combination was a better Aβ42 aggregation inhibitor than the individual compounds. Curcumin and piperine depresses Aβ-induced up-regulation of neuronal oxidative stress. The ability of these compounds to scavenge free radicals and inhibit the formation of Aβ aggregation are implicated from the results of this study. Conclusion: This combination of curcumin and piperine shows a more protective effect on neuronal oxidative damage when they was added into cultured neurons not later than Aβ, especially prior to Aβ. The curcumin and piperine combination prevents neurons from Aβ-induced oxidative stress, indicating a promising therapeutic in preventive medicine for Alzheimer disease.
Shaanxi is one of China's most important cradles of civilization. The main vein of Chinese culture is rich history and culture, and brilliant red culture embodies the essence of socialist core values. It is still relatively weak to deeply analyze the related research of Shaanxi Province's cultural province construction on the basis of studying the achievements of cultural development in foreign countries and China and combining with the reality of Shaanxi Province. In this paper, a BPNN (BP neural network) model is selected to study the comprehensive evaluation of tourism competitiveness of smart tourism cities, and the software is used to realize the simulation of the comprehensive evaluation system of tourism competitiveness of smart tourism cities, which more comprehensively and objectively reflects the level of comprehensive competitiveness of each city. It is believed that there are some problems in Shaanxi regional cultural communication, such as insufficient exploration of content resources, insufficient communication channels, and low audience awareness, hoping to provide ideas and reference for further exploring the promotion of cultural communication power.
Image retrieval technology has emerged as a popular research area of China's development of cultural digital image dissemination and creative creation with the growth of the Internet and the digital information age. This study uses the shadow image in Shaanxi culture as the research object, suggests a shadow image retrieval model based on CBAM-ResNet50, and implements it in the IoT system to achieve more effective deep-level cultural information retrieval. First, ResNet50 is paired with an attention mechanism to enhance the network's capacity to extract sophisticated semantic characteristics. The second step is configuring the IoT system's picture acquisition, processing, and output modules. The image processing module incorporates the CBAM-ResNet50 network to provide intelligent and effective shadow play picture retrieval. The experiment results show that shadow plays on GPU can retrieve images at a millisecond level. Both the first image and the first six photographs may be accurately retrieved, with a retrieval accuracy of 92.5 percent for the first image. This effectively communicates Chinese culture and makes it possible to retrieve detailed shadow-play images.
The influence of temperature, moisture and organic matter on the persistence of cyfluthrin was determined using three types of Malaysian soils, namely clay, clay loam and sandy clay loam obtained from a tomato farm in Cameron Highlands, Pahang. The persistence of cyfluthrin was observed in the laboratory at two temperature levels of 25 and 35 degreeC and field water capacity of 30 and 80%. Treated soil samples were incubated in a growth chamber for 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 10, 14, 21 and 28 days. The results from the incubation studies showed that temperature and organic matter content significantly reduced the half-life (t1/2) values of cyfluthrin in the three soil types, but moisture content had very little effect. It was observed that cyfluthrin persisted longer at lower temperature and moisture content and higher organic matter content in all the three soil types. The present study demonstrated that under the tropical conditions of Malaysia, cyfluthrin dissipated rapidly in soils compared to its dissipation in soils of temperate regions, evidently due to high temperature.
Palm shell activated carbon was modified via surface impregnation with polyethyleneimine (PEI) to enhance removal of Cu(2+) from aqueous solution in this study. The effect of PEI modification on batch adsorption of Cu(2+) as well as the equilibrium behavior of adsorption of metal ions on activated carbon were investigated. PEI modification clearly increased the Cu(2+) adsorption capacities by 68% and 75.86% for initial solution pH of 3 and 5 respectively. The adsorption data of Cu(2+) on both virgin and PEI-modified AC for both initial solution pH of 3 and 5 fitted the Langmuir and Redlich-Peterson isotherms considerably better than the Freundlich isotherm.
Studies on ligand binding potential of glycyrrhizic acid, a potential agonist to PPARgamma, displayed encouraging results in amelioration of metabolic syndrome. The regulation of gene cassettes by PPARgamma affects glucose homeostasis, lipid, lipoprotein metabolism and adipogenesis. This study was performed to determine the effects of GA on total PPARgamma and LPL expression levels, lipid parameters and HOMA-IR. Oral administration of 100 mg/kg GA for 24 hours resulted in an increase in insulin sensitivity with decreases in blood glucose, serum insulin and HOMA-IR. Improvement in serum lipid parameters was also observed with a decrease in triacylglycerol, total cholesterol and LDL-cholesterol and an elevation in HDL-cholesterol. GA administration also resulted in up-regulation of total PPARgamma and LPL expression levels in the visceral and subcutaneous adipose tissues, abdominal and quadriceps femoris muscles, as well as liver and kidney, with a significant up-regulation only in the visceral adipose tissue, abdominal and quadriceps femoris muscles. Thus, oral administration of 100 mg/kg GA for 24 hours improved insulin sensitivity and lipid profiles and induced upregulation of total PPARgamma and LPL expression levels in all studied tissues.
Background: Globally, vulnerable populations have been disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent responses, such as lockdown measures and mass vaccinations. Numerous ethical challenges have arisen at different levels, be it at the policy-making level or on the ground. For example, policymakers have to contain a highly contagious disease with high morbidity using scarce resources, while minimizing the medium- to long-term social and economic impacts induced by containment measures. This study explores the impact of COVID-19 on vulnerable populations in Malaysia by using an intersectional framework that accounts for overlapping forms of marginalization. Methods: This study utilizes in-depth qualitative data obtained from 34 individuals and organizations to understand the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on vulnerable populations in Malaysia. We utilize four principles of ethics to guide our coding and interpretation of the data - namely beneficence, non-maleficence, justice and autonomy. We utilize a frequency analysis to roughly understand the types of ethical issues that emerged. Using hermeneutic content analysis (HCA), we then explore how the principles interact with each other. Results: Through the frequently analysis, we found that although beneficence was very prevalent in our dataset, so was a significant amount of harm - as perpetuated through injustice, the removal or lack of autonomy and maleficence. We also unearthed a worrying landscape of harm and deep systemic issues associated with a lack of support for vulnerable households - further exacerbated during the pandemic. Conclusions: Policy recommendations for aid organizations and society to mitigate these ethical problems are presented, such as long overdue institutional reforms and stronger ethical practices rooted in human rights principles, which government agencies and aid providers can then use in the provision of aid to vulnerable populations.
Based on a previous study, glabridin displayed a dose-dependent increase in estrogenic activity and cell proliferative activity in Ishikawa cells. However, when treated in combination with 17β-E2, synergistic estrogenic effect was observed but without the same synergistic increase in cell proliferative effect. This study aimed to identify the estrogen and nonestrogen-regulated activities induced by glabridin and in combination with 17β-E2 in comparison with 17β-E2. The results showed that 10 µM glabridin and the combination treatment of 100 nM glabridin with 1 nM 17β-E2 regulated both the genomic and nongenomic estrogen pathways to possibly provide benefits of estrogens in cardiovascular, circulatory, and vasculature systems. Meanwhile, the combination of 100 nM glabridin with 1 nM 17β-E2 seems to be more suitable to be used as an estrogen replacement. Finally, the results of this study have added on to the present knowledge of glabridin's function as a phytoestrogen and suggested new ideas for the usage of glabridin.
Tomato leaf curl New Delhi virus (ToLCNDV), a member of the genus Begomovirus in the family Geminiviridae is naturally transmitted by the whitefly Bemisia tabaci (order Hemiptera, family Aleyrodidae) in a circulative and persistent manner (Moriones et al. 2017). ToLCNDV has occurred in Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Iran, Italy, Malaysia, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Spain, Thailand and Tunisia (Moriones et al. 2017). To date, The primary cultivated host of ToLCNDV has been identified as tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum), but the virus is also known to infect 43 other plant species from a range of families including Cucurbitaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Solanaceae, Malvaceae and Fabaceae (Zaidi et al. 2017). In August 2021, virus-like symptoms including leaf deformation and curing were observed on tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) in a greenhouse of about 0.5 hectares in Zhejiang Province, China. To identify viral agents potentially associated with this disease, an Oxford Nanopore cDNA library from a symptomatic sample was generated and sequenced. Total RNA was extracted using RNAiso Plus (TaKaRa, Tokyo, Japan). Libraries were constructed using Oxford Nanopore PCR-cDNA Sequencing Kit (SQK-PCS109; Oxford Nanopore Technologies, Oxford, UK), as recommended. Approximately 8.7 million reads were obtained from the Oxford MinION platform. After removing the adapters and low-quality reads, the clean reads were subjected to BLASTn analysis against the nt database. Approximately 797 and 168 reads produced high nt identities to the genome of ToLCNDV DNA-A (GeneBank Accession No. U15015.2) and ToLCNDV DNA-B (GeneBank Accession No. U15017.2) respectively. We designed 6 primer pairs (Table S1) to obtain the sequence of ToLCNDV Zhejiang (ToLCNDV-ZJ) isolate DNA-A and DNA-B. Briefly, total DNA from ToLCNDV-infected tomato was extracted using standard cetyl trimethylammonium bromide method. Segments of ToLCNDV DNA-A and DNA-B were amplified using high-fidelity DNA polymerase KOD-Plus-Neo (Toyobo, Osaka, Japan). PCR products were cloned into the pLB vector (Tiangen, Beijing, China) and Sanger sequenced. The obtained sequences were assembled into complete sequences of ToLCNDV-ZJ DNA-A (2,739 nt, GeneBank Accession No. OP356207) and DNA-B (2,693 nt, GeneBank Accession No. OP356208). Pairwise sequence comparison revealed that the ToLCNDV -ZJ shared the highest nt sequence identities of 98.7% and 98.4% with the genome segments of New Delhi isolate (genome A: HM159454) and India:Delhi:Cucumis:2012 isolate (genome B: KC545813) respectively. Furthermore, we performed PCR detection on 10 collected samples using the primer pair P1F and P1R. All eight symptomatic plants showing upward leaf curling and leaf distortion tested positive for ToLCNDV infection, whereas two asymptomatic plants were ToLCNDV free. To our knowledge, this is the first report of ToLCNDV infecting tomato in China, and with the widespread presence of B. tabaci in green houses, ToLCNDV may be a potential threat to the cultivation of tomato in China. In addition, ToLCNDV is an exceptional Old World bipartite begomovirus. In China, monopartite DNA satellite-associated begomoviruses with mostly narrow geographical ranges predominate, and are widespread (Li et al., 2022). The occurrence of ToLCNDV in China, which indicates that the success of this virus would become an emerging threat to vegetable and fiber crops.
Nipah virus (NiV), a bat-borne paramyxovirus, results in neurological and respiratory diseases with high mortality in humans and animals. Developing vaccines is crucial for fighting these diseases. Previously, only a few studies focused on the fusion (F) protein alone as the immunogen. Numerous NiV strains have been identified, including 2 representative strains from Malaysia (NiV-M) and Bangladesh (NiV-B), which differ significantly from each other. In this study, an F protein sequence with the potential to prevent different NiV strain infections was designed by bioinformatics analysis after an in-depth study of NiV sequences in GenBank. Then, a chimpanzee adenoviral vector vaccine and a DNA vaccine were developed. High levels of immune responses were detected after AdC68-F, pVAX1-F, and a prime-boost strategy (pVAX1-F/AdC68-F) in mice. After high titers of humoral responses were induced, the hamsters were challenged by the lethal NiV-M and NiV-B strains separately. The vaccinated hamsters did not show any clinical signs and survived 21 days after infection with either strain of NiV, and no virus was detected in different tissues. These results indicate that the vaccines provided complete protection against representative strains of NiV infection and have the potential to be developed as a broad-spectrum vaccine for human use.
Myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury (MIRI) is a major hindrance to the success of cardiac reperfusion therapy. Although increased neutrophil infiltration is a hallmark of MIRI, the subtypes and alterations of neutrophils in this process remain unclear. Here, we performed single-cell sequencing of cardiac CD45+ cells isolated from the murine myocardium subjected to MIRI at six-time points. We identified diverse types of infiltrating immune cells and their dynamic changes during MIRI. Cardiac neutrophils showed the most immediate response and largest changes and featured with functionally heterogeneous subpopulations, including Ccl3hi Neu and Ym-1hi Neu, which were increased at 6 h and 1 d after reperfusion, respectively. Ym-1hi Neu selectively expressed genes with protective effects and was, therefore, identified as a novel specific type of cardiac cell in the injured heart. Further analysis indicated that neutrophils and their subtypes orchestrated subsequent immune responses in the cardiac tissues, especially instructing the response of macrophages. The abundance of Ym-1hi Neu was closely correlated with the therapeutic efficacy of MIRI when neutrophils were specifically targeted by anti-Lymphocyte antigen 6 complex locus G6D (Ly6G) or anti-Intercellular cell adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) neutralizing antibodies. In addition, a neutrophil subtype with the same phenotype as Ym-1hi Neu was detected in clinical samples and correlated with prognosis. Ym-1 inhibition exacerbated myocardial injury, whereas Ym-1 supplementation significantly ameliorated injury in MIRI mice, which was attributed to the tilt of Ym-1 on the polarization of macrophages toward the repair phenotype in myocardial tissue. Overall, our findings reveal the anti-inflammatory phenotype of Ym-1hi Neu and highlight its critical role in myocardial protection during the early stages of MIRI.