In the present study, two experiments were conducted to investigate the effect of Mn source on Mn transport and the expression of a Mn transporter, divalent metal transporter 1 (DMT1), in the small intestine of broilers. In Expt 1, in situ ligated duodenal loops from Mn-deficient chicks (29-d-old) were perfused with solutions containing 0 -8·74 mmol Mn/l from either MnSO 4 , or one of two organic chelates of Mn and amino acids with moderate (OM) or strong (OS) chelation strength (Q f ) up to 30 min. In Expt 2, Mn-deficient intact broilers (14-d-old) were fed a control diet (12·45 mg Mn/kg) or the control diet supplemented with 100 mg Mn/kg as one of all Mn sources for 14 d. The uptake kinetics of Mn from different Mn sources in the ligated duodenal loops followed a saturable process as determined by regression analysis of concentration-dependent uptake rates. The maximum transport rate (J max ) and K m values, and DMT1 mRNA levels in the ligated duodenal loops were higher (P,0·01) for OM and OS than for MnSO 4 . DMT1 mRNA levels were much higher (P, 0·01) in the duodenum than in the jejunum and ileum. Both DMT1 mRNA levels in the duodenum and plasma Mn contents from the hepatic portal vein of intact chicks on day 14 post-feeding increased (P,0·05) in the following order: control , MnSO 4 , OM , OS. These results indicated that organic Mn sources with stronger Q f showed higher Mn transport and absorption, and DMT1 might be involved in the regulation of organic Mn transport in the proximal small intestine of broilers.

To search for novel anticancer agents, we designed and synthesized a series of new triazolyl berberine derivatives. The evaluation of all the synthesized compounds and their anticancer activities against a panel of four human cancer cell lines including MCF-7 (breast), MCF-7/ADR (breast), SW-1990 (pancreatic), SMMC-7721 (liver) and the noncancer cell line HUVEC (human umbilical vein endothelial cell). The results showed that most of the compounds displayed better anticancer activities against MCF-7 and SMMC-7721 compared with berberine. Among these derivatives, compounds 5p and 5a exhibited the most potent inhibitory activities against the SMMC-7721 and SW-1990 cell lines with IC50 values of 14.861 ± 2.4 µM and 16.798 ± 3.4 µM. Furthermore, compounds 5p, 5a and 5n exhibited much better selectivity toward the normal cell line HUVEC than berberine.

A series of novel derivatives of phenyl-substituted berberine triazolyls has been designed and synthesized via copper-catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition click chemistry in an attempt to develop antitumor agents. All of the compounds were evaluated for anticancer activity against a panel of three human cancer cell lines, including MCF-7 (breast), SW-1990 (pancreatic), and SMMC-7721 (liver) and the noncancerous human umbilical vein endothelial cell (HUVEC) cell lines. The results indicated that most of the compounds displayed notable anticancer activities against the MCF-7 cells compared with berberine. Among these derivatives, compound 16 showed the most potent inhibitory activity against the SW-1990 and SMMC-7721 cell lines, with half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) values of 8.54±1.97 μM and 11.87±1.83 μM, respectively. Compound 36 exhibited the most potent inhibitory activity against the MCF-7 cell line, with an IC50 value of 12.57±1.96 μM. Compound 16 and compound 36 exhibited low cytotoxicity in the HUVEC cell line, with IC50 values of 25.49±3.24 μM and 30.47±3.47 μM. Furthermore, compounds 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 32, and 36 exhibited much better selectivity than berberine toward the normal cell line HUVEC.

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