Kaempferol and Its Glycoside Derivatives as Modulators of Etoposide Activity in HL-60 Cells

Kaempferol is a polyphenol found in a variety of plants. Kaempferol exerts antitumor properties by affecting proliferation and apoptosis of cancer cells. We investigated whether kaempferol and its glycoside derivatives—kaempferol 3-O-[(6-O-E-caffeoyl)-β-D-glucopyranosyl-(1→2)]-β-D-galactopyranoside-7-O-β-D-glucuropyranoside (P2), kaempferol 3-O-[(6-O-E-p-coumaroyl)-β-D-glucopyranosyl-(1→2)]-β-D-galactopyranoside-7-O-β-D-glucuropyranoside (P5) and kaempferol 3-O-[(6-O-E-feruloyl)-β-D-glucopyranosyl-(1→2)]-β-D-galactopyranoside-7-O-β-D-glucuropyranoside (P7), isolated from aerial parts of Lens culinaris Medik.—affect the antitumor activity of etoposide in human promyelocytic leukemia (HL-60) cells. We analyzed the effect of kaempferol and its derivatives on cytotoxicity, DNA damage, apoptosis, cell cycle progression and free radicals induced by etoposide. We demonstrated that kaempferol increases the sensitivity of HL-60 cells to etoposide but does not affect apoptosis induced by this drug. Kaempferol also reduces the level of free radicals generated by etoposide. Unlike kaempferol, some of its derivatives reduce the apoptosis of HL-60 cells (P2 and P7) and increase the level of free radicals (P2 and P5) induced by etoposide. Our results indicate that kaempferol and its glycoside derivatives can modulate the activity of etoposide in HL-60 cells and affect its antitumor efficacy in this way. Kaempferol derivatives may have the opposite effect on the action of etoposide in HL-60 cells compared to kaempferol.     

Whole-Exome Sequencing Identifies a Novel Germline Variant in PTK7 Gene in Familial Colorectal Cancer

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most frequently diagnosed malignancy worldwide. Only 5% of all CRC cases are due to germline mutations in known predisposition genes, and the remaining genetic burden still has to be discovered. In this study, we performed whole-exome sequencing on six members of a Polish family diagnosed with CRC and identified a novel germline variant in the protein tyrosine kinase 7 (inactive) gene (PTK7, ENST00000230419, V354M). Targeted screening of the variant in 1705 familial CRC cases and 1674 healthy elderly individuals identified the variant in an additional familial CRC case. Introduction of this variant in HT-29 cells resulted in increased cell proliferation, migration, and invasion; it also caused down-regulation of CREB, p21 and p53 mRNA and protein levels, and increased AKT phosphorylation. These changes indicated inhibition of apoptosis pathways and activation of AKT signaling. Our study confirmed the oncogenic function of PTK7 and supported its role in genetic predisposition of familial CRC.     

Modelling of the carding process for spunlace nonwovens with particular regard to selected mechanical parameters in a double-drum card. Part 2: Modelling of delay times in the longitudinal mixing process

Abstract

The production of Spunlace nonwoven fabric is a complex process and includes, among other things, several important stages, such as carding, needling and drying. One of the most important stages is the carding process, which has a significant impact on the shaping of the physico-mechanical and qualitative characteristics of the nonwoven fabric. The article presents the modelling of the carding process in a two-drum system. A mathematical model, determining the expected number of drum and carding card cycles was proposed. Based on this model, delays were determined, due to longitudinal shifts of fibre in the carding process. Numerical simulations have been made and discussed in relation to fibre collection factors, at different production speeds and the number of carding rollers in the worker-stripper system.     

XAI-driven model for crop recommender system for use in precision agriculture

Agriculture serves as the predominant driver of a country's economy, constituting the largest share of the nation's manpower. Most farmers are facing a problem in choosing the most appropriate crop that can yield better based on the environmental conditions and make profits for them. As a consequence of this, there will be a notable decline in their overall productivity. Precision agriculture has effectively resolved the issues encountered by farmers. Today's farmers may benefit from what's known as precision agriculture. This method takes into account local climate, soil type, and past crop yields to determine which varieties will provide the best results. The explainable artificial intelligence (XAI) technique is used with radial basis functions neural network and spider monkey optimization to classify suitable crops based on the underlying soil and environmental conditions. The XAI technology would provide assets in better transparency of the prediction model on deciding the most suitable crops for their farms, taking into account a variety of geographical and operational criteria. The proposed model is assessed using standard metrics like precision, recall, accuracy, and F1-score. In contrast to other cutting-edge approaches discussed in this study, the model has shown fair performance with approximately 12% better accuracy than the other models considered in the current study. Similarly, precision has improvised by 10%, recall by 11%, and F1-score by 10%.     

Vertex reconstruction using a single layer silicon detector

Typical vertex finding algorithms use reconstructed tracks, registered in a multi-layer detector, which directly point to the common point of origin. A detector with a single layer of silicon sensors registers the passage of primary particles only in one place. Nevertheless, the information available from these hits can also be used to estimate the vertex position, when the geometrical properties of silicon sensors and the measured ionization energy losses of the particles are fully exploited. In this paper, the algorithm used for this purpose in the PHOBOS experiment is described. The vertex reconstruction performance is studied using simulations and compared with results obtained from real data. The very large acceptance of a single-layered multiplicity detector permits vertex reconstruction for low multiplicity events where other methods, using small acceptance subdetectors, fail because of insufficient number of registered primary tracks.     

Antimutagenic and antiradical properties of flavones from the roots of Scutellaria baicalensis georgi

The four flavonoids baicalin, baicalein, wogonoside, and wogonin have been isolated from Scutellaria baicalensis (Lamiaceae) root extract as main bioactive components. We evaluated their antimutagenic activity as potential chemopreventive natural substances using the Ames test. Free radical scavenging properties have also been measured with the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay. Both crude extract and isolated flavone glycosides and aglycones have antimutagenic and free radical scavenging properties. The lipophilic flavone baicalein has been confirmed to be the most powerful antimutagen among the compounds tested.     

Voltammetric method using a lead film electrode for the determination of caffeic acid in a plant material

This paper deals with development of an adsorptive stripping voltammetric method for determination of caffeic acid (CA) at a lead film electrode (PbFE). The working electrode was prepared in situ on a glassy carbon substrate as a “mercury-free” electrochemical sensor. The method is based on the accumulation by adsorption of caffeic acid on PbFE and then the oxidation of CA during the stripping step. In a acetate buffer based supporting medium the oxidation signal for caffeic acid was found to be proportional to the CA concentration in the range from 1 × 10⁻⁸ to 5 × 10⁻⁷ mol/L with the limit of detection equal to 4 × 10⁻⁹ mol/L (with preconcentration for 30 s). The method, operated in the square-wave voltammetric mode, was successfully applied to the determination of CA in a plant material (herbs of Plantago lanceolata). The content of caffeic acid received by the proposed method was in close agreement with that obtained by high performance thin-layer chromatography (HPTLC) combined with densitometry. This appears to be the first application of a lead film electrode to the determination of an organic compound in such complicated matrix.