Zhenyu Wang

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a highly malignant tumour with a poor prognosis and few effective treatment options. Development of resistance to conventional therapies and occurrence of severe side effects highlight the urgent need for novel, low-toxicity interventions. Natural products are promising candidates for HCC drug development thanks to their multi-target activity and favourable safety profiles. Previous studies reported that Lingonberry extract, a bioactive natural product, inhibits proliferation of HepG₂ cells. However, the key molecular targets and underlying anticancer mechanisms remain unclear. In this study, we analysed gene chip data from Lingonberry extract-treated HepG₂ tumour-bearing mice using bioinformatics tools, employing a cross-species, multi-level screening strategy to identify PSMB8 as the core regulatory gene. In vitro functional validations (Western blotting, RT-PCR, CCK-8 assay, colony formation assay, flow cytometry and TUNEL staining) confirmed these findings. Downregulating PSMB8 was found to effectively induce late apoptosis in HepG₂ cells, and Lingonberry extract was found to significantly reduce PSMB8 protein expression. This study identifies PSMB8 as a key mediator of the anticancer effect of Lingonberry extract in HepG₂ cells. It provides a reliable methodological reference for screening anticancer targets of natural products and supports further exploration of Lingonberry extract as a potential adjuvant/lead compound for HCC.

Lingonberry (Vaccinium vitis-idaeaL.) extract contains various active ingredients with strong inhibitory effects on cancer cell growth. HepG2 cells were treated with various concentrations of lingonberry extract, cell inhibition rate was measured by CCK-8 assay, and apoptosis rate by annexin-propidium iodide double-staining assay. The cell cycle was analyzed by flow cytometry, and cell migration and invasion by transwell assay. Real-time reverse transcription-PCR and western blotting were employed to analyze the expression of C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 3 (CXCL3). Ki-67, TUNEL, and transwell assays were used to verify the relationship between CXCL3 expression and cell proliferation, apoptosis, migration, and invasion. The composition of lingonberry extract was: 37.58% cyanidin-3-O-glucoside, 10.96% kaempferol 3-O-arabinoside, 4.52% epicatechin, 4.35% chlorogenic acid, 3.83% catechinic acid, 1.54% isoquercitrin, 1.05% 4-hydroxycinnamon acid, 1.03% cyanidin chloride, 0.85% 2,3-dihydroxybenzoic acid, 0.55% quercetin, 0.36% D-(-)-quininic acid, 0.96% caffeic acid, 0.16% ferulic acid, 0.12% oleanolic acid, and 0.03% ursolic acid. Lingonberry extract inhibited the proliferation of HepG2 cells in a dose-dependent manner. After 48 h exposure to 100 μg/mL extract the inhibition rate and IC₅₀were 80.89±6.05% and 22.62 μg/mL, respectively. Lingonberry extract promoted late apoptosis in HepG2 cells and arrested the cell cycle at G2/M and S phases. Lingonberry extract also promoted the apoptosis of HepG2 cancer cells, inhibiting their proliferation, migration, and invasion by regulating the expression of CXCL3. This study offers new insight into the antihepatoma activity of lingonberry extract and provides a basis for the development of pilot antitumor drugs.

To investigate extraction technology and determine the optimal extraction conditions of polysaccharides from Phellodendron amurense Rupr. pollen (PARPP), an alkaline extraction method was carried out to extract PARPP with ultrasonic treatment. The effects of three independent factors [NaOH concentration (X₁: 0.4–0.6%), ultrasonic temperature (X₂: 30–50 °C), ultrasonic time (X₃: 30–50 min)] on the extraction yield of PARPP were optimized using a response surface methodology. The principal conclusions establish the optimal extraction conditions under the ultrasonic power 250 W for Phellodendron amurense Rupr. pollen were as follows: X₁: 0.52%, X₂: 43.02 °C, X₃: 38.64 minutes. Verification experiment was carried out, and no significant difference was found between observed and estimated values for each response. Under such optimal conditions, the experimental yield was 4.133 ± 0.02%, which was compatible with the value predicted by model 4.157%, suggesting that the estimated models were reliable and valid for extract of polysaccharides. The UV, FT-IR and GC/MS analysis of PARPP showed that it was a type, or variety, of glycoprotein, and was composed of ribose, rhamnose, arabinose, xylose, mannose, glucose, galactose with the ratio of 3.7 : 5.9 : 30.8 : 6.4 : 3.2 : 15.7 : 18.5.

Structure of multi-channel parallel–serial chromatographic system, and optimization of ethanol concentration, elute rate, sample volume and the concentration of polyphenols in the enrichment process of polyphenols.

The total phenolic content, total flavonoid content, vitamin C content, and antioxidant activities of ethanol extracts from different kiwifruit varieties (Actinidia kolomikta, Actinidia arguta, Actinidia chinensis) were determined in this study. Multiple scavenging activity assays including the hydroxyl radical, O₂⁻·radical, DPPH, and the ABTS⁺ radical scavenging activity assays were used to identify the antioxidant activities of Actinidia extracts. The cell viability of HepG2 and HT-29 cells was also examined in this study. The results demonstrated that the Actinidia kolomikta extract had a higher antioxidant activity than the other two Actinidia extracts. There is a positive correlation between antioxidant activity and the polyphenols and vitamin C content in all three extracts (R² ≥ 0.712, p < 0.05). The Actinidia arguta extract had the highest inhibitory effect on HepG2 and HT-29 cell growth. These results provide new insight into the health functions of fruit and demonstrate that Actinidia extracts can potentially have health benefits.

To decrease the cost of bioethanol production, biomass recalcitrance needs to be overcome so that the conversion of biomass to bioethanol becomes more efficient. CO₂ laser irradiation can disrupt the lignocellulosic physical structure and reduce the average size of fiber. Analyses with Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, specific surface area, and the microstructure of corn stover were used to elucidate the enhancement mechanism of the pretreatment process by CO₂ laser irradiation. The present work demonstrated that the CO₂ laser had potential to enhance the bioconversion efficiency of lignocellulosic waste to renewable bioethanol. The saccharification rate of the CO₂ laser pretreatment was significantly higher than ultrasonic pretreatment, and reached 27.75% which was 1.34-fold of that of ultrasonic pretreatment. The results showed the impact of CO₂ laser pretreatment on corn stover to be more effective than ultrasonic pretreatment.