Rheum rhabarbarum has been widely used as a herbal medicine and food in China. The objective of this study was to investigate the cytoprotective action and underlying mechanisms of rhein, one active ingredient isolated from R. rhabarbarum, on H2O2-challenged rat small intestine epithelial cells (IEC-6 cells). H2O2-challenged IEC-6 cells were incubated in the pretreatment with or without rhein or LY294002, a PI3K/Akt inhibitor. The cell viability, apoptosis, intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS), and antioxidants were measured. The expressions of heme oxygenase 1 (HO-1), nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor (Nrf2), Akt, and p-Akt were evaluated by western blotting. Meanwhile, LY294002 was also used to investigate the role of PI3K/Akt in the rhein-induced cytoprotective role. The results showed that pretreatment of rhein could reverse the inhibition of cell viability and suppress the apoptosis, caspase-3 activity, and intracellular ROS induced by H2O2. Rhein also supported SOD activity catalase activity, glutathione S-transferase activity, and glutathione content. Furthermore, rhein induced the protein expression of HO-1 together with its upstream mediator Nrf2 and activated the phosphorylation of Akt in IEC-6 cells. LY294002 inhibited increased cell viability, upregulated the lowered apoptotic rate, and enhanced the weakened ROS levels. Although the inhibition of PI3K/Akt did not inhibit the Nrf2 nuclear level under 4 μM rhein, LY294002 inhibited the Nrf2 nuclear level under 2 μM rhein and blocked HO-1 expression. These data demonstrated that rhein protected IEC-6 cells against oxidative damage partly via PI3K/Akt and Nrf2/HO-1 pathways.

The microvasculature endothelium accurately regulates the passage of molecules across the gut-vascular barrier (GVB), which plays an essential role in the intestinal immunity. Naringenin is with reported therapeutic potential against...

Pain in dairy cattle is gaining attention globally. This study investigated the current attitudes of Chinese dairy practitioners to pain and its management in intensively raised dairy cattle. A total of 465 valid questionnaires with 26 painful conditions scored on numerical rating scales were collected from dairy practitioners. Data were analysed by descriptive statistics, analysis of variance, principal component analysis, and multivariate regression models. Dystocia was perceived as the most painful, while mild mastitis with milk changes only was perceived as the least painful. Respondents who agreed with the statement “pain management is worthwhile” tended to give a higher pain score. Young respondents (≤23 years old) and those from farms with ≤1000 cattle had lower pain scores for conditions with severe pain and low variability but higher pain scores for conditions with less severe pain and high variability, whereas highly educated respondents had consistently lower pain scores. As for pain management, older respondents (≥24 years old) tended to choose non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, and farms with >1000 cattle were more likely to use analgesics. Training in pain perception and management should be emphasised with the hope of promoting animal welfare and reducing unnecessary production losses.

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Coix seed is a functional food in the Chinese diet that possesses the ability to alleviate ulcerative colitis clinically. However, the underlying mechanisms remain ambiguous. In this study, we investigated the protective effect of the Coix seed diet on experimental colitis mice. The mice were randomly divided into four groups: control group, model group, Coix seed feed group, and positive control group. The maintenance feed of the mice was replaced with Coix seed feed 10 days before orally administering the mice 5% (w/v) dextran sulfate sodium drink. As a result, the Coix seed feed alleviated colitis symptoms, maintained the complete blood count at a normal level, reduced the pathological score, relieved inflammatory cytokine secretion, and alleviated oxidative stress. Network pharmacology analysis was used for further exploration of the targets of Coix seed feed. The results showed that T-cell regulation is one of the targets of Coix seed feed, and the analysis of the T-lymphocyte subset and innate immune cell distribution of the colon tissue supported the network pharmacology results. In conclusion, Coix seed, as a staple food, can alleviate experimental colitis, and the mechanism may be related to the immune regulation effect of Coix seeds.

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