Shenqi is a traditional Chinese polyherbal medicine has been widely used for the treatment of allergic rhinitis (AR). The aim of this study was to investigate the anti-allergic rhinitis activity of Shenqi and explore its underlying molecular mechanism. Ovalbumin (OVA)-induced allergic rhinitis rat model was used to evaluate the anti-allergic rhinitis effect of Shenqi. The effect of Shenqi on IgE-mediated degranulation was measured using rat basophilic leukemia (RBL-2H3) cells. Primary spleen lymphocytes were isolated to investigate the anti-allergic mechanism of Shenqi by detecting the expression of transcription factors via Western blot and the level of cytokines (IL-4 and IFN-γ) via ELISA. In OVA-induced AR rat models, Shenqi relieved the allergic rhinitis symptoms, inhibited the histopathological changes of nasal mucosa, and reduced the levels of IL-4 and IgE. The results from the in vitro study certified that Shenqi inhibited mast cell degranulation. Furthermore, the results of GATA3, T-bet, p-STAT6, and SOCS1 expression and production of IFN-γ and IL-4 demonstrated that Shenqi balanced the ratio of Th1/Th2 (IFN-γ/IL-4) in OVA-stimulated spleen lymphocytes. In conclusion, these results suggest that Shenqi exhibits an obvious anti-allergic effect by suppressing the mast cell-mediated allergic response and by improving the imbalance of Th1/Th2 ratio in allergic rhinitis. Full article

In this study, we aimed to use different strategies to further uncover the anti-angiogenic molecular mechanism of a fucoidan-like polysaccharide STPC2, isolated from brown alga Sargassum thunbergii. A desulfated derivative, STPC2-DeS, was successfully prepared and identified. The native polysaccharide and desulfated product were subjected to evaluate their anti-angiogenic effects. In the tube formation assay, STPC2 showed dose-dependent inhibition. In addition, STPC2 could distinctly inhibit the permeation of HUVEC cells into the lower chamber. Moreover, a significant reduction of microvessel density was observed in chick chorioallantoic membrane assay treated with STPC2. Meanwhile, STPC2 was found to repress the VEGF-induced neovessel formation in the matrigel plug assay in vivo. However, STPC2-DeS failed to suppress the anti-angiogenic activity via these in vitro and in vivo strategies. In addition, we demonstrated that STPC2 could significantly downregulate the phosphorylation of VEGFR2 and its related downstream Src family kinase, focal adhesion kinase, and AKT kinase. Furthermore, surface plasmon resonance assay revealed that STPC2 bound strongly to VEGF to interfere with VEGF–VEGFR2 interaction. Taken together, these results evidently demonstrated that STPC2 exhibited a potent anti-angiogenic activity through binding to VEGF via sulfated groups to impede VEGF–VEGFR2 interaction, thus affected the downstream signaling molecules. Full article

In view of the low accuracy and uncertainty of the traditional rape plant disease recognition relying on a single feature, this paper puts forward a rape plant disease recognition method based on Dempster-Shafer (D-S) evidence theory and multi-feature fusion. Firstly, color matrix and gray-level co-occurrence matrix are extracted as two kinds of features from rape plant images after processing. Then by calculating the Euclidean distance between the test samples and training samples, the basic probability assignment function can be constructed. Finally, the D-S combination rule of evidence is used to achieve fusion, and final recognition results are given by using the variance. This method is used to collect rape plant images for disease recognition, and recognition rate arrives at 97.09%. Compared with other methods, experimental results show that the method is more effective and with lower computational complexity. Full article

A novel polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) tree-like nanofiber membrane (PVDF-TLNM) was fabricated by adding tetrabutylammonium chloride (TBAC) into a PVDF spinning solution via one-step electrospinning. The structure of the prepared membranes was characterized by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and pore size analysis, and the hydrophilic property and microfiltration performance were also evaluated. The results showed that the tree-like nanofiber was composed of trunk fibers and branch fibers with diameters of 100–500 nm and 5–100 nm, respectively. The pore size of PVDF-TLNM (0.36 μm) was smaller than that of a common nanofiber membrane (3.52 μm), and the hydrophilic properties of the membranes were improved significantly. The PVDF-TLNM with a thickness of 30 ± 2 μm showed a satisfactory retention ratio of 99.9% against 0.3 μm polystyrene (PS) particles and a high pure water flux of 2.88 × 10⁴ L·m⁻²·h⁻¹ under the pressure of 25 psi. This study highlights the potential benefits of this novel PVDF tree-like nanofiber membrane in the membrane field, which can achieve high flux rates at low pressure. Full article

Antimicrobial peptides have been accepted as excellent candidates for developing novel antibiotics against drug-resistant bacteria. Recent studies indicate that spider venoms are the source for the identification of novel antimicrobial peptides. In the present study, we isolated and characterized an antibacterial peptide named lycosin-II from the venom of the spider Lycosa singoriensis. It contains 21 amino acid residue lacking cysteine residues and forms a typical linear amphipathic and cationic α-helical conformation. Lycosin-II displays potent bacteriostatic effect on the tested drug-resistant bacterial strains isolated from hospital patients, including multidrug-resistant A. baumannii, which has presented a huge challenge for the infection therapy. The inhibitory ability of lycosin-II might derive from its binding to cell membrane, because Mg²⁺ could compete with the binding sites to reduce the bacteriostatic potency of lycosin-II. Our data suggest that lycosin-II might be a lead in the development of novel antibiotics for curing drug-resistant bacterial infections. Full article

Cordycepin was previously reported to have anti-tumor, anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant activity. However, the potential role of cordycepin in bone metabolism and cell biology of osteoclasts remains unclear. In our study, we focused on the in vitro effects of cordycepin on osteoclastogenesis and its in vivo effects in ovariectomized (OVX) mice. Osteoclast differentiation, formation and fusion were evaluated by Tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP) stain, focal adhesion stain and fusion assay, respectively. Osteoclastic bone resorption was evaluated by pit formation assay. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation and removal were detected by the ROS assay. OVX mice were orally administered with 10 mg/kg of cordycepin daily for four weeks. In vitro results revealed that cordycepin inhibited receptor activator of nuclear factor κB ligand (RANKL)-induced osteoclast differentiation, formation, fusion and bone resorption activity. We further proved that cordycepin treatments scavenged the generation of ROS, upregulated interferon regulatory factor 8 (IRF-8) and suppressed the activity of nuclear factor of activated T cells c1 (NFATc1) during osteoclastogenesis. In vivo results indicated cordycepin prevents bone loss, rescues bone microarchitecture, and restores bone mineralization in OVX mice. Our observations strongly suggested that cordycepin is an efficient osteoclast inhibitor and hold potential therapeutic value in preventing bone loss among postmenopausal osteoporosis patients. Full article

Surface modification techniques have been applied to generate titanium implant surfaces that promote osseointegration for use in dental applications. In this study, strontium-doped brushite coatings were deposited on titanium by electrochemical deposition. The phase composition of the coating was investigated by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction. The surface morphologies of the coatings were studied through scanning electron microscopy, and the cytocompatibility and bioactivity of the strontium-doped brushite coatings were evaluated using cultured osteoblasts. Osteoblast proliferation was enhanced by the addition of strontium, suggesting a possible mechanism by which strontium incorporation in brushite coatings increased bone formation surrounding the implants. Cell growth was also strongly influenced by the composition of the deposited coatings, with a 10% Sr-doped brushite coating inducing the greatest amount of bone formation among the tested materials. Full article

Cementogenesis is of great importance for normal teeth root development and is involved in the repair process of root resorption caused by orthodontic treatment. As highly differentiated mesenchymal cells, cementoblasts are responsible for this process under the regulation of many endogenous agents. Among these molecules, sclerostin has been much investigated recently for its distinct antagonism effect on bone metabolism. Encoded by the sost gene, sclerostin is expressed in osteocytes and cementocytes of cellular cementum. it is still unclear. In the current study, we investigated the effects of sclerostin on the processes of proliferation and differentiation; a series of experiments including MTT, apoptosis examination, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity, gene analysis, and alizarin red staining were carried out to evaluate the proliferation and differentiation of cementoblasts. Protein expression including osteoprotegerin (OPG) and receptor activator of nuclear factor kappa B ligand (RANKL) were also checked to analyze changes in osteoclastogenesis. Results show that sclerostin inhibits cementoblasts proliferation and differentiation, and promotes osteoclastogenesis. Interestingly, the monoclonal antibody for sclerostin has shown positive effects on osteoporosis, indicating that it may facilitate cementogenesis and benefit the treatment of cementum related diseases. Full article