Acid stress can affect the viability of probiotics, especially Bifidobacterium. This study aimed to improve the acid tolerance of Bifidobacterium longum BBMN68 using adaptive evolution. The stress response, and genomic differences of the parental strain and the variant strain were compared by acid stress. The highest acid-resistant mutant strain (BBMN68m) was isolated from more than 100 asexual lines, which were adaptive to the acid stress for 10(th), 20(th), 30(th), 40(th), and 50(th) repeats, respectively. The variant strain showed a significant increase in acid tolerance under conditions of pH 2.5 for 2 h (from 7.92 to 4.44 log CFU/ml) compared with the wildtype strain (WT, from 7.87 to 0 log CFU/ml). The surface of the variant strain was also smoother. Comparative whole-genome analysis showed that the galactosyl transferase D gene (cpsD, bbmn68_1012), a key gene involved in exopolysaccharide (EPS) synthesis, was altered by two nucleotides in the mutant, causing alteration in amino acids, pI (from 8.94 to 9.19), and predicted protein structure. Meanwhile, cpsD expression and EPS production were also reduced in the variant strain (p < 0.05) compared with WT, and the exogenous WT-EPS in the variant strain reduced its acid-resistant ability. These results suggested EPS was related to acid responses of BBMN68.
The rheological properties of rice flour during pasting, cooling and reheating were measured. The effect of protein on the rheological characteristics during temperature sweeping was studied. The results indicated that protein decreased the temperature of the start of the pasting, at the same time making the pasting of the rice flour difficult through competition with starch granules. A high protein content in rice is helpful to increase heat‐resistant capacity and keep the hardness and stickiness of the gel when the temperature is changed. It was also deduced that rice with a high protein content needs more water to cook and the hardness and stickiness of the cooked rice were more stable than rice with a lower protein content when subjected to a change in temperature.
PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS
Protein is one of the main components in rice which influences the nutrition value and the eating quality of rice. The relationship between rice quality and protein content is ambiguous, which causes the evaluation of rice quality to be difficult. The influence of protein on the gelatinization properties of rice can be studied objectively using a dynamic rheometer and the influence on the eating and cooking quality of rice can be deduced. The result is helpful to evaluating the quality of rice correctly and gives some references to building an evaluation standard for the quality of rice.
EGFR inhibitor therapies have brought significant benefit
to NSCLC
patients. However, all patients gradually progress to acquired resistance via diverse mechanisms. Akt3 overexpression but not Akt1/2
is one of the found molecular events that mediate osimertinib (1) resistance in NSCLC patients. Here, we report 12l as the first bona fide isoform-selective Akt3 degrader which potently
induced proteasomal degradation of the target both in vitro and in vivo, whereas its effects on Akt1/2 were
minimal. Using 12l as a tool, non-canonical function
of Akt3 was validated to contribute greatly to survival of 1-resistant H1975OR NSCLC cells. Degrader 12l potently
suppressed the growth of H1975OR as well as several NSCLC cell lines
with low nanomolar IC50 values and demonstrated promising in vivo antitumor efficacy in nude mice bearing H1975OR
or PC9 NSCLC xenograft models. Selective degradation of Akt3 may be
considered as a novel strategy for human cancer therapy.
Flos Sophorae extract (FSE) with abundant rutin and Tremella fuciformis polysaccharides (TP) could act as novel natural improvers of low-fat yogurt due to their health benefits and properties of interacting with proteins. This study attempted to understand how FSE or its combination with TP influences physicochemical, textural, and antioxidant properties of low-fat yogurts. The results indicated that the low concentrations of FSE (1.2 or 2.4%) increased the antioxidant activity, prompted the S. thermophilus growth, water holding capacity (WHC), and textural and sensory properties, and shortened the fermentation time, but reduced the rheological properties of yogurts compared with the control. Co-supplementing appropriate TP with the optimum FSE concentration (2.4%) improved the rheological properties, and further enhanced the S. thermophilus growth, WHC, textural and antioxidant properties, and sensory scores of yogurts compared with the 2.4% FSE group, with the best effects at 0.4 mg/mL TP. Taken together, co-supplementation of polyphenols extract FSE with Tremella fuciformis polysaccharides may be an available strategy to optimize health-promoting properties and overcome defects of low-fat yogurts.
Twenty novel talmapimod analogues were designed, synthesised and evaluated for the in vivo anti-inflammatory activities. Among them, compound 6n, the most potent one, was selected for exploring the mechanisms underlying its anti-inflammatory efficacy. In RAW264.7 cells, it effectively suppressed lipopolysaccharides-induced (LPS-induced) expressions of iNOS and COX-2. As illustrated by the western blot analysis, 6n downregulated both the NF-jB signalling and p38 MAPK phosphorylation. Further enzymatic assay identified 6n as a potent inhibitor against both p38a MAPK (IC 50 ¼1.95 mM) and COX-2 (IC 50 ¼0.036 mM). By virtue of the concomitant inhibition of p38a MAPK, its upstream effector, and COX-2, along with its capability to downregulate NF-jB and MAPK-signalling pathways, 6n, a polypharmacological anti-inflammatory agent, deserves further development as a novel anti-inflammatory drug.
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