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Asparagus residues were used as materials to obtain antioxidant compounds by solid-liquid extraction in this study. The effects of different extraction parameters including extraction solvents, time, temperature and liquid-solid ratio on the contents of total flavonoids, total phenolics and total antioxidant activity were investigated. Antioxidant activity of the extract from asparagus residues was evaluated by HPLC-ABTS· + and the bioactive components were identified by HPLC-MS/MS. The results showed that the extraction yield was significantly influenced (P<0.05) by solvent composition, extraction time and temperature. The appropriate parameters were preferred as extraction solvent of 50 % ethanol with liquid-solid ratio of 30:1, extraction temperature of 80°C and time of 2 h. Antioxidant activity evaluation of the extract indicated flavonoids and phenolics were dominant bioactive compounds. Five antioxidant compounds were identified as ferulic acid, kaempferol, quercetin, rutin and isorhamnetin.

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Stroke is the leading cause of permanent disability in China, 1 and ischemic stroke (IS) accounts for almost 80% of all strokes, 2 whereas coronary heart disease (CHD) is a major worldwide health threat. In tandem with the economic success of China, the number of individuals in China with IS and CHD has increased significantly in recent years, with stroke resulting in 301 million disability-adjusted life-years. 3CHD in Chinese adults aged 35 to 84 years is predicted to increase by 64% during the period 2020-2029. 4 Although numerous epidemiology studies have researched the association between hyperhomocysteinemia and IS or CHD, the results have been conflicting. Most studies have been retrospective and focused on healthy populations in the developed world, whereas data from developing countries remains limited.Vitamins B12 and B6 and folate are involved in the metabolism of methionine, and deficiency of these B vitamins can cause elevation of total homocysteine (tHcy) levels.5 Deficiencies in these nutrients are more prevalent in developing countries. A meta-analysis of randomized trials demonstrated that homocysteine-lowering interventions for stroke seem not to have a significant effect in geographic regions with high dietary folate intake, but may have a substantial effect in regions with low folate intake, such as Asia. 6 Regarding public health guidelines,Background and Purpose-Total homocysteine level (tHcy) is a risk factor of ischemic stroke (IS) and coronary heart disease. However, the results are conflicting and mainly focused on healthy individuals in developed countries. Methods-A prospective, population-based cohort study was conducted among 5935 participants from 60 communities in the city of Shenzhen, China. A Cox regression analysis was applied to evaluate the contribution of tHcy to the risk of IS and coronary heart disease. The effect of folic acid supplementation on tHcy levels was also evaluated among 501 patients with essential hypertension, who received an average of 2.5 years of folic acid supplementation. Results-After adjustment for confounding factors, the hazard ratios (95% confidence intervals) of IS caused by hyperhomocysteinemia were 2.18 (1.65-2.89), 2.40 (1.56-3.67), and 2.73 (1.83-4.08) in the total, male, and female participants, respectively. Compared with normal levels of tHcy (<15 μmol/L), the hazard ratios (95% confidence intervals) for IS in the highest tHcy category (≥30 μmol/L) were 4.96 (3.03-8.12), 6.11 (3.44-10.85), and 1.84 (0.52-6.46) in the total, males, and females participants, respectively. However, we did not observe a significant relationship between tHcy and the risk of coronary heart disease. The 2.5 years of folic acid supplementation reduced tHcy levels by 6.7 μmol/L (27.92%) in patients with essential hypertension. Conclusions-Hyperhomocysteinemia in Chinese hypertensive patients is significantly associated with IS risk but not coronary heart disease susceptibility, and folic acid supplementation can efficiently reduce tHcy levels.

Body mass index (BMI) is associated with fatty liver risk, however, the dose-response relationship between continuous BMI changes and fatty liver risk has not been clearly defined. In this study, a cross-sectional study was conducted and a total of 3202 individuals were included. Unconditional logistic regression and restricted cubic spline model were used to analyze the dose-response association of BMI with fatty liver risk. After adjusting for confounding factors (age, gender, hypertension, total cholesterol, triglycerides, glucose, high-density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein, uric acid, homocysteine, creatinine, aspartate aminotransferase and alanine transaminase), overweight (OR = 3.55, 95% CI: 2.49–5.06, P = 2.79 × 10−12), obesity (OR = 7.59, 95% CI: 4.91–11.71, P = 6.56 × 10−20) were significantly related to fatty liver risk. Stratified by gender (male/female), age (<50 years/≥50 years), prevalence of hypertension (yes/no), the above association was still significant (P = 0.004 or lower). In dose-response analysis, BMI was statistically significantly associated with fatty liver risk in a nonlinear fashion (approximately J-shaped fashion, Pnonlinearity = 1.71 × 10−4 or lower) in the total population and all subgroups mentioned above. Findings from this dose-response analysis suggest that higher BMI (overweight/obesity) is an independent, dose-dependent risk factor for fatty liver, and prevention of fatty liver focusing on continuous changes in BMI should be noted.

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The aim of the present study was to investigate whether methylation of the angiotensin I converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) promoter increases the risk of essential hypertension (EH). A total of 96 patients with EH were recruited and 96 sex‑ and age‑matched healthy controls. Methylation of 5 CpG dinucleotides in the ACE2 promoter was quantified using bisulfite pyrosequencing. Logistic regression and multiple linear regression were used to adjust for confounding factors and the generalized multifactor dimensionality reduction (GMDR) method was applied to investigate high‑order interactions. Methylation of CpG4 (adjusted P=0.020) and CpG5 (adjusted P=0.036) was significantly higher in patients with EH, with frequency 97.56±5.65% and 12.75±4.15% in EH individuals and 95.73±9.11% and 11.47±3.67% in healthy controls. GMDR detected significant interaction among the 5 CpG sites (odds ratio=7.33, adjusted P=0.01). Furthermore, receiver operating characteristic curves identified that CpG5 methylation was a significant predictor of EH. Notably, CpG2 methylation was significantly higher in males than in females (adjusted P=0.018). Conversely, CpG5 methylation was significantly lower in males (adjusted P=0.032). These results indicated that aberrant methylation of the ACE2 promoter may be associated with EH risk. In addition, sex may significantly influence ACE2 methylation.