Astragalus membranaceus possesses the function of enhancing immunity, protecting the liver, diuretic, anti-aging, anti-stress, anti-hypertensive, and more extensive antibacterial effects. Polysaccharides, one kind of the major active ingredients of A. membranaceus, are considered to be responsible for their versatile use. Now, a systematic summary of research progress and prospects of polysaccharides from A. membranaceus polysaccharides (AMPs) is necessary to facilitate their further study and application. In this review, the optimal extraction methods, structural features, biological activities, and applications of AMPs were emphasized. The structure-activity relationships are also analyzed and elucidated. Solvent, ultrasonic, microwave, enzyme-assisted, ultra-high pressure, and combined methods have been used to extract AMPs. Among them, solvent extraction is the most commonly used method because it is simple and easy to operate, but the efficiency needs to be improved further. The ultra-high pressure method is the most efficient but has a low economic return. AMPs exhibited various bioactivities, including immunomodulation, antitumor, and antidiabete. The structure-activity relationships revealed that different structure configurations, chain conformations, and physical properties would have different bioactivities. However, the new method for purification of certain polysaccharides, detailed structure-activity relationships (SAR), mechanisms of bioactivities, and quality control of AMPs need to be extensively investigated.

Background: Ziziphi Spinosae Semen (ZSS) contains a wide range of active components. Because existing methods cannot fully evaluate these components, a new quantitative method needs to be established for component characterization. Objective: Ziziphi Spinosae Semen has gained increasing attention in recent years, primarily as a medicinal and edible plant. The content determination of ZSS is not specified in the Chinese Pharmacopeia (2020 edition). Environmental conditions in different production areas can influence the quality of ZSS. This study aims to identify ZSS collected from various geographical origins in China. Materials and methods: High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) fingerprints were established using optimized HPLC-photo-diode array methods. Subsequently, similarity analysis and quantification of ZSS from different sources were conducted. Metabolites of ZSS were identified and evaluated using the UHPLC-Q Exactive HF Orbitrap MS system. Principal component analysis, hierarchical cluster analysis, and orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis were performed based on all peak areas. Results: In this study, the components of ZSS against insomnia were screened through network pharmacology. As revealed by the results of protein-protein interaction network analysis, Gene Ontology analysis, and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway analysis, 14 core components, 10 core targets, and 25 pathways were identified. Thirty-four batches of ZSS fingerprints were established through the HPLC method, which identified 12 characteristic peaks, with 6 being qualitatively identified. An identification method for assessing differences in the chemical composition of ZSS from different origins was developed by using UHPLC-Q Exactive HF Orbitrap MS. Differential markers from various origins were screened and identified. Through multiple analyses such as principal component analysis and orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis, it was concluded that there were differences in ZSS metabolites from Hebei, Shandong, and Shaanxi provinces. Seventeen differential metabolites of different origins were identified. Conclusions: This study confirmed that ZSS played a synergistic role in improving insomnia through multiple components, targets, and pathways. The content of all 5 components was high, except for jujuboside B. In addition, 6 compounds in ZSS extracts from different origins differed in content, indicating that different growth environments might impact the quality of ZSS.

OBJECTIVE: Pseudostellaria heterophylla has been paid more attention in recent years, mainly as a medicine food homology plant. The content determination of P. heterophylla is not specified in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia (version 2020). The environmental conditions in different production areas could exert an influence on the quality of P. heterophylla. The purpose of this study is to discriminate P. heterophylla collected from different geographical origins of China. METHODS: In this study, the content of polysaccharide in 28 batches of P. heterophylla was determined using phenol-sulfuric acid. HPLC fingerprints were established under optimised HPLC-PDA methods. Subsequently, the similarity analysis (SA) and the quantification of heterophyllin B were analyzed. The metabolites of P. heterophylla were identified and evaluated using UHPLC-Q Exactive HF orbitrap MS system. Principal component analysis (PCA), partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA), hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) and orthogonal PLS-DA (OPLS-DA) were performed based on all peak areas. RESULTS: The polysaccharide content in Guizhou and Jiangsu was higher than that of other production areas, which varied significant from different origins. While the content of heterophyllin B in Anhui and Jiangsu was high. The correlation coefficients of HPLC fingerprints for 28 batches samples ranged from 0.877 to 0.990, and the characteristic map can be used to identify and evaluate the quality of P. heterophylla. The samples from Fujian, Guizhou, Jiangsu provinces can be relatively separated using multivariate statistical analysis including PCA, PLS-DA, HCA, OPLS-DA, indicating that their metabolic compositions were significantly different. Ultimately, a total of 15 metabolites which were filtrated by a VIP-value > 1 and a P-value < 0.05 associated with the separation of different origins were identified. CONCLUSION HPLC fingerprint was established to evaluate the quality and authenticity of P. heterophylla. The present work showed that the difference of geographic distributions had an influence on the internal chemical compositions. A sensitive and rapid untargeted metabolomics approach by UHPLC-Q Exactive HF orbitrap MS was utilized to evaluate P. heterophylla from different origins in China for the first time. Overall, this study provides insights to metabolomics of P. heterophylla and supplies important reference values for the development of functional foods.

Background: Chinese yam (Dioscorea opposita Thunb.), with medicinal and edible properties, holds a significant position in both traditional medicine and food in China. It is rich in resistant starch (RS), which imparts various beneficial effects, including anticonstipation, regulation of blood lipids, and prevention of gastric ulcers. However, the resistance of native yam starch to digestion diminishes during cooking, necessitating suitable modifications. Objective: In this article, yam starch was complexed with five different polyphenols to create RS5. The goal was to explore how these diverse polyphenols influence the physicochemical characteristics and bioactivities associated with yam RS. Method: Yam starch-polyphenol complexes, involving five different polyphenols, namely, magnolol (MAG), ferulic acid (FA), resveratrol (RES), apple polyphenols (APs), and green tea polyphenols (GTPs), were prepared. The investigation encompassed the assessment of physicochemical properties, structural traits, in vitro cholate binding capacity, and in vitro antidigestive effects of these complexes. Results: The results highlight the pronounced affinity of MAG for yam starch, followed by FA. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy reveals that starch-polyphenol binding primarily involves noncovalent interactions. X-ray diffraction analysis discloses V-type crystal structures in YS-MAG, YS-APs, and YS-GTPs complexes. The incorporation of polyphenols reduces the thermal stability of starch while enhancing its in vitro cholate binding capacity, restraining starch digestion, and elevating RS content. Notably, YS-FA exhibits an impressive RS content of up to 54.15%. In addition, YS-MAG and YS-FA significantly enhance the production of short-chain fatty acids. These findings deepen our comprehension of the interplay between yam starch and polyphenols, offering valuable insights for the development of novel food products with enhanced health benefits.

Globally, the incidence of pancreatic cancer is on a rise. Pancreatic cancer is characterized by difficulty in early diagnosis, frequent distant metastasis, low surgical resection rate, and high risk of postoperative recurrence. Better treatments need to be developed to prolong the prognosis. Studies have confirmed that inflammation is closely correlated with tumorigenesis, and inflammatory mediators play important roles on tumor microenvironment of pancreatic cancer and lead to poor prognosis. This article reviewed the progress on the correlation between peripheral blood inflammatory index and the prognosis of pancreatic cancer.

Objective: To describe the clinical characteristics with long-term prognosis in patients with mid-ventricular obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (MVOHCM).
Methods: A total of 66 MVOHCM patients treated in our hospital were retrospectively studied for their morbidity, clinical characteristics and mortality. The cumulative survival rate was calculated by Kaplan-Meier method; the risk factors for cardiac death and cardiovascular events were analyzed by uni- and multivariate Cox proportional hazard model.
Results: There were 66 (2.74%) patients suffering from MVOHCM among 2413 patients of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and the average diagnostic age was (40.16 ± 14.64) years. With (7.30 ± 6.25) years of follow-up study, the cardiovascular mortality was 13.6% and unexplained syncope (HR=13.37, 95% CI: 1.65-114.46, P=0.015) was the independent predictor for cardiovascular death. There were 45.45% (30/66) patients experienced at least 1 time of cardiovascular event and the most frequent one was non-sustained ventricular tachycardia (NSVT); 19.70% (13/66) of patients combined with apical aneurysms, and they were more inclined to experience NSVT.
Conclusion: MVOHCM patients usually have unfavorable prognosis with the higher incidence of cardiovascular events, some patients may develop apical aneurysm. The early diagnosis of MVOHCM is important for appropriate treatment.

Objective: To dynamically evaluate left ventricular perfusion, global and local functional changes during left ventricular aneurysm (LVA) formation and to explore the relationship between the size of LVA and LVEF, LVESV, LVEDV by gated99mTc-MIBI SPECT (GSPECT) and gated18F-FDG PET metabolic (GPET) imaging in experimental pigs. Methods: LVA model was established by occlusion of left circumlfex artery (LCX) and placing an Ameroid constrictor at the proximal end of left anterior descending artery (LAD) in a total of 16 Chinese mini-pigs. At the 1st, 4th and 8th weeks of surgery, the changes of total perfusion defect (TPD), LVA formation and LVEF, LVESV, LVEDV were dynamically evaluated by GSPECT and GPET; the relationships between the size of LVA and LVEF, LVESV, LVEDV were analyzed respectively.Results: There were 5 pigs died in surgery and 2 died at the 1st week of modeling. According to golden (pathological) standard, 9 animals successfully ifnished the dynamic imaging study. At the 1st week of (basic) modeling, 4 animals formed large LVA, 2 formed small LVA at the apex and 3 without LVA formation. At the 4th and 8th weeks of modeling, dynamic imaging presented that the animals with large LVA had gradually increased range and degree of perfusion defect, LVEDV, LVESV, while gradually decreased LVEF; the above indexes were relatively stable in animals with small or none LVA. In addition, the size of LVA was related to LVEF (r=-7.26), LVEDV (r=0.855) and LVESV (r=0.825), allP<0.05. Conclusion: In experimental pigs, at the beginning of LVA formation, large range and severe perfusion defect may cause large aneurysm, the LV functional damage and remodeling may gradually increase and the prognosis is poor; in contrast, the animals with small or none LVA have better prognosis and usually without ventricular remodeling; which implies that in acute phase of LVA formation, the size of aneurysm may predict the trend of global LV systolic function and remodeling at the early stage.