Attenuating effect of post-treatment with QiShen YiQi Pills on myocardial fibrosis in rat cardiac hypertrophy

QiShen YiQi Pills(?) (QSYQ) is a compound Chinese medicine used for treatment of cardiovascular diseases. However, the potential of QSYQ to inhibit cardiac fibrosis in left ventricle hypertrophy is not explored to date. We investigated the effects of post-treatment with QSYQ on rat myocardial fibrosis in left ventricle hypertrophy induced by pressure over-load through ascending aortic stenosis. QSYQ was administrated 4 weeks after the surgery, at a dose of 0.8 g/kg/day over the next 4 weeks, while echocardiography was performed 4 and 8 weeks, respectively, after the surgery. Eight weeks after the surgery, myocardial blood flow was determined by Laser-Doppler Perfusion Imager and the ratio of heart weight to body weight (HW/BW) was estimated, in concurrent evaluation of myocardial histology and ultrastructure, as well as collagen content by sirius red staining, and immunohistochemistry staining for CD68 and transforming growth factor beta 1. Post-treatment with QSYQ significantly alleviated left ventricular posterior wall end diastolic thickness and the HW/BW, increased left ventricle ejection fraction and left ventricle fractional shortening. QSYQ also decreased myocardial fibrosis size. The expression of CD68 and transforming growth factor beta 1 were obviously suppressed after QSYQ treatment. The results suggest that post-treatment with QSYQ attenuates pressure over-load-induced cardiac hypertrophy and myocardial fibrosis through interfering in inflammatory process.     

Quality of life of low vision patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis

ObjectiveQuality of vision plays an important role in everyday living, and low vision (LV) can take a toll on individual's quality of life (QOL). The objective of this paper is to evaluate the impact of LV on QOL and depressive symptoms in LV patients compared with healthy controls.DesignSystematic review and meta-analysis.MethodsLiterature was systematically searched to obtain all relevant records. Covidence software was used to conduct the systematic review. Duplicate records were removed, and 2 independent reviewers screened records for relevance. After screening, risk of bias assessment was carried out. Data were extracted and meta-analysis was performed using STATA 15.0. Fixed-effect and random-effect models were computed based on heterogeneity.ResultsIn total, 2870 records were retrieved from database and grey literature searches. Twelve articles (35 341 subjects) were included for quantitative analysis. Overall, the QOL of LV patients was significantly lower compared with healthy individuals. Common QOL questionnaires, including 25-item visual function questionnaire (VFQ-25) (standard mean difference [SMD] = 0.91, confidence interval [CI]: [0.42–1.40]), 36-item short form survey (SMD = 0.53, CI: [0.26–0.80]), VFQ-14 (SMD = 0.58, CI: [0.42–0.74]), and visual function QOL questionnaire (SMD = 0.68, CI: [0.54–0.82]), demonstrated a poor QOL in LV patients compared with healthy controls. Additionally, odds of depressive symptoms were significantly greater (odds ratio = 2.25, CI: [1.58–3.21]) in LV patients compared with controls.ConclusionLV patients demonstrated a poor QOL and higher odds of depressive symptoms compared with healthy controls.     

Relationship of low-circulating "anti-aging" klotho hormone with disability in activities of daily living among older community-dwelling adults

The aging suppressor gene klotho encodes a single-pass transmembrane protein klotho that in mice is known to extend life span when overexpressed and to resemble accelerated aging, with skeletal muscle atrophy and decreased bone mineral density, when expression is disrupted. We sought to examine the relationship between plasma klotho and disability in activities of daily living (ADL) in older community-dwelling adults. In a cross-sectional study, plasma klotho was measured in a population-based sample of 802 adults, ≥ 65 years, who participated in the "Invecchiare in Chianti" (Aging in the Chianti Area) (InCHIANTI) study in Tuscany, Italy. The overall proportion of adults with ADL disability was 11.9%. Mean (standard deviation) klotho concentrations were 689 (238) pg/mL. From the lowest to the highest tertile of plasma klotho, 16.1%, 9.7%, and 5.6% of participants, respectively, had ADL disability (p=0.0004). Plasma klotho, per 1 standard deviation increase, was associated with ADL disability (odds ratio=0.57, 95% confidence interval 0.35-0.93, p=0.02) in a multivariate logistic regression model adjusting for age, education, cognition, physical activity, physical performance, total cholesterol, alcohol and tobacco use, and chronic diseases. Low plasma klotho concentrations were independently associated with ADL disability among older community-dwelling men and women.     

A two-enzyme cascade reaction consisting of two reaction pathways. Studies in bulk solution for understanding the performance of a flow-through device with immobilised enzymes

Enzyme-catalysed cascade reactions in flow-through systems with immobilised enzymes currently are of great interest for exploring their potential for biosynthetic and bioanalytical applications. Basic studies in this field often aim at understanding the stability of the immobilised enzymes and their catalytic performance, for example, in terms of yield of a desired reaction product, analyte detection limit, enzyme stability or reaction reproducibility. In the work presented, a cascade reaction involving the two enzymes bovine carbonic anhydrase (BCA) and horseradish peroxidase (HRP) – with hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) as HRP “activator” – was first investigated in great detail in bulk solution at pH = 7.2. The reaction studied is the hydrolysis and oxidation of 2′,7′-dichlorodihydrofluorescein diacetate (DCFH₂-DA) to 2′,7′-dichlorofluorescein (DCF), which was found to proceed along two reaction pathways. This two-enzyme cascade reaction was then applied for analysing the performance of BCA and HRP immobilised in glass fiber filters which were placed inside a filter holder device through which a DCFH₂-DA/H₂O₂ substrate solution was pumped. Comparison was made between (i) co-immobilised and (ii) sequentially immobilised enzymes (BCA first, HRP second). Significant differences for the two arrangements in terms of measured product yield (DCF) could be explained based on quantitative UV/vis absorption measurements carried out in bulk solution. We found that the lower DCF yield observed for sequentially immobilised enzymes originates from a change in one of the two possible reaction pathways due to enzyme separation, which was not the case for enzymes that were co-immobilised (or simultaneously present in the bulk solution experiments). The higher DCF yield observed for co-immobilised enzymes did not originate from a molecular proximity effect (no increased oxidation compared to sequential immobilisation).

A cascade reaction catalysed by bovine carbonic anhydrase (BCA) and horseradish peroxidase (HRP) proceeds over two possible pathways, which explains differences in product formation for differently immobilised enzymes in flow-through reactions.     

Synergetic treatment of dye contaminated wastewater using microparticles functionalized with carbon nanotubes/titanium dioxide nanocomposites

The highly efficient treatment of azo dye contaminated wastewater from the textile industry is an important but challenging problem. Herein, polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) microparticles, incorporating multiple-walled carbon nanotubes/titanium dioxide (MWCNTs/TiO₂) nanocomposites, were successfully synthesized to treat wastewater containing Rhodamine B (RhB) dyes in a synergetic approach, by combining sorption and photocatalytic degradation. The surfactant wrapping sol–gel method was applied to synthesize MWCNTs/TiO₂ nanocomposites with TiO₂ nanoparticles evenly distributed on the surface of the MWCNTs. The PDMS microparticles were fabricated with an oil-in-water (O/W) single emulsion template, using needle-based microfluidic devices. MWCNTs/TiO₂ nanocomposites (at a weight ratio of 1%, and 2%, respectively) were mixed with the PDMS precursor as the dispersed phase, and an aqueous solution of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) was used as the continuous phase. Highly monodispersed microparticles, with average diameters of 692.7 μm (Coefficient of Variation, CV = 0.74%) and 678.3 μm (CV = 1.04%), were formed at an applied flow rate of the dispersed and continuous phase of 30 and 200 μL min⁻¹, respectively. The fabricated hybrid microparticles were employed for the treatment of RhB, involving a dark equilibrium for 5 hours and UV irradiation for 3 hours. The experimental conditions of applied PDMS type, mass loading amount, treatment duration, photodegradation kinetics, initial concentration of pollutants and environmental pH values were investigated in this work. The PDMS microparticles with 2 wt% MWCNTs/TiO₂ nanocomposites can exhibit a removal efficiency of 85%. Remarkably, an efficiency of 70% can be retained after the microparticles have been recycled and reused for 3 cycles. The PDMS–MWCNTs/TiO₂ microparticles possess a superior performance over conventional treatment approaches for dye contaminated wastewater, especially in recyclability and the prevention of secondary pollution. This work provides a feasible and eco-friendly route for developing an efficient and low-cost microfluidic method for treating complicated water environmental systems.

PDMS–MWCNTs/TiO₂ microparticles made by microfluidics can achieve 85% removal efficiency of RhB pollutant in wastewater via synergetic treatment.     

Ex situ catalytic fast pyrolysis of soy sauce residue with HZSM-5 for co-production of aromatic hydrocarbons and supercapacitor materials

A promising approach is proposed for the efficient conversion of soy sauce residue (SSR) into aromatic hydrocarbons and a supercapacitor electrode material by ex situ catalytic fast pyrolysis (CFP) technology with HZSM-5. The thermal decomposition behaviors of SSR were first investigated via thermogravimetry (TG) and pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS) analyses. The ex situ CFP of SSR was conducted to elucidate the aromatic hydrocarbons production under different pyrolysis temperatures and HZSM-5-to-SSR (HZ-to-SSR) ratios using both Py-GC/MS and lab-scale instruments. The results indicated that the aromatic hydrocarbons reached the maximal yields of 22.20 wt% from Py-GC/MS with an HZ-to-SSR ratio of 11 at 650 °C, and 17.61 wt% from the lab-scale device with an HZ-to-SSR ratio of 2, respectively. The as-obtained yield of aromatic hydrocarbons was far higher than those obtained from typical lignocellulosic biomass materials, confirming that SSR is a promising material for aromatics production. The pyrolytic solid product collected with this method was further activated by KOH to synthesize N-doped activated carbon (NAC) for supercapacitors. The physicochemical analysis showed that NAC possessed N-incorporated hierarchical pores, and exhibited a promising capacitance of 274.5 F g⁻¹ at 1 A g⁻¹.

A new method to co-produce aromatic hydrocarbons and a supercapacitor material from the catalytic fast pyrolysis of soy sauce residue has been developed.