Parboiled rice supplementation alleviates high-fat diet-induced hyperlipidemia by regulating genes and gut microbiota in mice

Dietary parboiled rice(PR)has a low risk of disease,but little is known about the contribution of PR to the prevention of hyperlipidemia.The potential role and underlying mechanisms of PR in hyperlipidemia were evaluated in this study.Male C57BL/6J mice were fed with a normal diet,high-fat diet(HFD)containing refined rice(HFDRR)or PR(HFDPR).It was found that PR intervention improved lipid accumulation in mice.Transcriptomic data analysis revealed that 27 genes were up-regulated(mostly involved in lipid breakdown)and 86 genes were down-regulated(mostly involved in inflammatory responses)in the HFDPR group compared to the HFDRR group.And 15 differentially expressed genes(DEGs)were validated by quantitative real-time PCR(RT-qPCR),while protein interaction network showed that protein tyrosine phosphatase receptor type C(PTPRC)has a central role.The gut microbiota of mice was also altered after different dietary treatments,with higher ratio of Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes,increased abundances of Ruminococcaceae,Lachnospiraceae,Christensenellaceae,Porphyromonadaceae,Rikenellaceae and Prevotellaceae,and decreased abundances of Lactobacillaceae,Peptostreptococcaceae,Erysipelotrichaceae and Actinobacteria in the HFDRR group.In addition,it was observed that PPAR signaling pathway may act as a bridge between DEGs and differential gut microbiota.These results suggested that PR can prevent hyperlipidemia by modulating liver genes and gut microbiota.

Brown rice:a missing nutrient-rich health food

Brown rice(BR)is a traditional health food being rich in various active substances, which have effective preventive and therapeutic effects on many diseases. In this review, we systemically summarized the efficacy of BR on cardiovascular diseases(CVDs), hyperlipidemia, hypertension, diabetes, obesity, osteoporosis, neurodegenerative diseases, cancer, immune disorders, inflammation, anxiety, liver and stomach damage, etc. Underlying mechanisms have also been analyzed, which include regulating lipid synthesis and metabolism, improving insulin levels and increasing glucose metabolism, anti-oxidation, promoting the immune system, transcription and non-transcriptional regulation, blocking cell cycle, thereby improving disease symptoms and reducing its recurrence rate. Generally, BR has been almost disappeared in modern society, but it is promising to exploit the potential to become a functional food. Further research on the nutritional value, variety differences, storage problems, taste and molecular mechanism of BR will be conducive to help meticulously design clinical intervention trials and ultimately improve the treatment and prevention of various diseases.

Clinical characteristics in lymphangioleiomyomatosis-related pulmonary hypertension: an observation on 50 patients

Lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM) is a rare diffuse cystic lung disease. Knowledge on LAM-related pulmonary hypertension (PH) is limited. This study aimed to analyze the clinical characteristics of LAM with elevated pulmonary artery pressure (PAP) and evaluate the potential efficacy of sirolimus. The study involved 50 LAM patients who underwent echocardiography. According to the tricuspid regurgitation velocity (TRV), these patients were divided into the TRV≤2.8 m/s group and TRV>2.8 m/s group. Both groups comprised 25 females with an average age of 38.6±8.1 and 41.5±8.9 years. In the TRV>2.8 m/s group, the estimated systolic PAP (SPAP) was significantly elevated (52.08±12.45 mmHg vs. 30.24±5.25 mmHg, P<0.01). Linear analysis showed that SPAP was correlated with forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1), diffusing capacity of the lungs for carbon monoxide, alveolar arterial oxygen gradient (PA-aO2), and 6 min walking distance (r =-0.392,-0.351, 0.450, and -0.591, respectively;P<0.05), in which PA-aO2 was a risk factor for SPAP elevation (β= 0.064, OR= 1.066, P<0.05). Moreover, in 10 patients who received sirolimus therapy, SPAP decreased from 57.0±12.6 mmHg to 35.2±11.1 mmHg. The study showed that LAM patients with PH exhibit poor pulmonary function and hypoxemia and may benefit from sirolimus treatment.

Polydopamine-assisted in-situ formation of dense MOF layer on polyolefin separator for synergistic enhancement of lithium-sulfur battery

The separator is of great significance to alleviate the shuttle effect and dendrite growth of lithium-sulfur batteries.However,most of the current commercial separators cannot meet these requirements well.In this work,a dense metal-organic-framework(MOF)modification layer is in-situ prepared by the assistant of polydopamine on the polypropylene separators.Due to the unique structure and synergistic effect of polydopamine(PDA)and zeolitic imidazolate framework-8(ZIF-8),the functional separator can not only trap the polysulfides effectively but also promote the transport of lithium ions.As a result,the battery assembled with the functional separator exhibits excellent cycle stability.The capacity remains 711 mAh·g^(−1)after 500 cycles at 2 C,and the capacity decay rate is as low as 0.013%per cycle.The symmetrical battery is cycled for 1,000 h at 2 mA·cm^(−2)(2 mAh·cm^(−2))with the plating/stripping overpotential of 20 mV.At the same time,the modification separator shows a higher lithium ion transference number(0.88),better thermal stability and electrolyte wettability than the unmodified separator.