Jingyan Zhang

Bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV) constitutes a significant pathogen adversely threatening reproductive performance in the cattle industry, primarily by inducing ovarian dysfunction characterized by aberrant hormone synthesis and impaired follicular development. Although several commercial vaccines are available, they are insufficient for prevention and control BVDV infection, underscoring the necessity for the development of novel therapeutic drugs. This study aimed to investigate the antiviral activity of cryptotanshinone (CRY) against BVDV infection and its protective effects on bovine ovarian granulosa cells (BOGCs). An in vitro infection model was established by exposing BOGCs to BVDV. The results demonstrated that CRY exhibits anti-BVDV activity and alleviates detrimental effects on BOGCs through multiple mechanisms. Comparative analysis revealed that therapeutic administration of CRY constitutes the most effective mode of intervention. Furthermore, CRY promotes the secretion of estradiol (E₂) and progesterone (P₄) in BOGCs, counteracting the BVDV-induced reduction in these hormones. Moreover, CRY shows protective activity by mitigating BVDV-induced apoptosis in BOGCs. In summary, this study is the first to elucidate the inhibitory effect of CRY on BVDV and its regulatory role in BOGCs function, suggesting that CRY holds potential application value in the clinical treatment of BVDV-related reproductive disorders.

Curcumin, the principal bioactive compound derived from turmeric, possesses a wide range of therapeutic properties such as anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and wound-healing properties. Recent studies suggest that curcumin may alleviate HMGB1-mediated inflammation in ovarian cells. However, its role in modulating dysfunction in HMGB1-driven ovarian granulosa cells (OGCs) remains to be elucidated. In the present study, curcumin suppresses the HMGB1-induced overexpression of toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2) and ovulation-related factors such as EGFR, VEGF, STAR, and TIMP1/2 genes. Additionally, the elevated levels of TLR2, TLR1, TLR6, and phospho-NF-κB p65 proteins were significantly inhibited by curcumin. Further mechanistic analysis reveals that the interaction between HMGB1 and the TLR1-TLR2/TLR6 complex, as well as phospho-NF-κB p65, was restrained. This resulted in the suppression of the pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-6 production and the alleviation of the HMGB1-induced inflammation response in OGCs. Collectively, our findings demonstrate that curcumin modulates the upregulation of ovulation-related genes and pro-inflammatory cytokines in OGCs by inhibiting the TLR2-NF-κB pathway, providing a mechanistic basis for its potential application as a therapeutic agent against OGC inflammation.

Bovine viral diarrhea (BVD) is a common viral disease in cattle that causes huge economic losses in naïve herds that are introduced to bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV). Currently, there are no available anti-BVDV drugs due to the variety and mutability of strains; therefore, developing new anti-BVDV drugs is of great significance. The aim of this study was to investigate the anti-BVDV effects and immunomodulatory activities of Codonopsis pilosula polysaccharides (CPPs) in BVDV-infected bovine macrophage (BoMac) cells. CPPs directly inactivated BVDV particles and intervened in BVDV absorption process. The immunity suppression resulting from BVDV in BoMac cells was restored by CPPs, as was verified by phagocytosis increase, the expression up-regulation of cell surface co-stimulatory molecules (CD40, CD80, and CD86), and antigen-presenting function recovery. Furthermore, the expressions of cytokines including TNF-α, IFN-γ, IL-6, IL-18, IL-1β, Caspase-3, Bim, and Bcl-xL at the mRNA and proteins levels were modulated, and a reduction in the apoptosis rate was observed, which demonstrates that CPPs attenuated inflammation and apoptosis induced by BVDV. Collectively, our findings reveal new pharmacological properties of CPPs, which exert anti-BVDV efficacy and regulate immune injury induced by BVDV in BoMac cells, indicating that CPPs are a potential option for BVDV prevention in clinical application.

This study examined the effects of dietary supplementation with Chinese herbal mixture extracts (CHE) on growth performance, Immunity, antioxidant capacity, and gut microbiota composition in dairy calves. CHE is a compound extracts powder composed of Honeysuckle, Astragalus, Officinal magnolia bark, and Tangerine peel. Forty calves were randomly assigned to four groups: basal diet (CON), basal diet + 0.1% CHE (LCHE), basal diet + 0.2% CHE (MCHE), and basal diet + 0.4% CHE (HCHE). The experiment was conducted for 56 days with daily observations, bi-weekly weighing, blood sampling, and fecal collection toward the end. The addition of the CHE group significantly increased the average daily weight gain (ADG) and decreased the feed/gain ratio (F/G) compared to the CON group (p < 0.05). The apparent digestibility of crude fat, neutral detergent fiber, and acid detergent fiber was higher in HCHE and MCHE groups (p < 0.05). Serum GH and IGF-1 levels increased in MCHE and HCHE groups (p < 0.05). The blood biochemical analysis revealed that the levels of CA and GLU in the MCHE group were higher than those in the CON group, while remaining within the normal physiological range. Both the IgG and IFN-γ levels and the serum antioxidant levels were significantly increased in the CHE supplementation group compared with the control group (p < 0.05). High-throughput 16S rRNA sequencing revealed changes in gut microbiota, with increased unclassified Muribaculaceae and UCG-005 species in MCHE and HCHE groups (p < 0.05). In conclusion, CHE supplementation enhanced digestion, growth performance, immunity, and gut microbiota balance in calves without toxic side effects.Considering both the economic benefits and the effects of the additive, a clinical dosage of 0.2% CHE additive may be recommended.

This study aimed to optimize the ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) of polysaccharides from fermented Astragalus membranaceus (FAPS) and to investigate the physicochemical properties and antioxidant activities of the extracted polysaccharides. Using a combination of single-factor experiments and response surface methodology based on a Box–Behnken design, we improved the extraction of crude FAPS without deproteinization. Under optimal conditions (50 °C, 60 min, 8 mL/g, 480 W), the yield of crude FAPS obtained by UAE (7.35% ± 0.08) exceeded the yield from convectional hot water extraction (6.95% ± 0.24). After protein removal, the FAPS was subjected to comprehensive chemical analyses, including HPLC, HPGPC, FT-IR, UV spectroscopy, and a Congo red assay. The results showed that FAPS had a significantly higher carbohydrate content compared to the non-fermented group (95.38% ± 6.20% vs. 90.938% ± 3.80%), while the protein content was significantly lower than that of the non-fermented Astragalus polysaccharides (APS) group (1.26% ± 0.34% vs. 6.76% ± 0.87%). In addition, FAPS had a higher average molecular weight and a lower Mw/Mn ratio compared to APS. The primary monosaccharides in FAPS were identified as Glc, Ara, Gal and GalA, with a molar ratio of 379.72:13.26:7.75:6.78, and FAPS lacked a triple helix structure. In vitro, antioxidant assays showed that FAPS possessed superior antioxidant properties compared to APS. These results emphasize the significant potential of FAPS as an antioxidant, possibly superior to that of APS. The results of this study suggest that fermentation and UAE offer promising applications for the development and utilization of Astragalus membranaceus for human and animal health.

The seeds of Zanthoxylum bungeanum seeds, a high-quality vegetable protein source, encounter application limitations due to their high molecular weight and anti-nutritional factors. This study focused on optimizing the fermentation process by investigating key parameters such as inoculation amount, inoculation ratio, material-to-liquid ratio, fermentation temperature, and fermentation time. Both single-factor experiments and response surface methodology were used to determine the optimal conditions. The effects of fermentation on particle size, surface morphology (scanning electron microscopy), water holding capacity, oil holding capacity, solubility, and emulsification properties of Zanthoxylum bungeanum seed protein were analyzed. In addition, acute toxicity was investigated at doses of 1.5 g/kg, 3 g/kg, 6 g/kg, and 12 g/kg. The results showed that the optimal fermentation conditions were an inoculum concentration of 10%, a ratio of Bacillus subtilis to Lactobacillus plantarum of 1:1, a material-to-liquid ratio of 0.8:1, a temperature of 35 °C, and a fermentation period of 4 days. Under these optimized conditions, the soluble protein content reached 153.1 mg/g. After fermentation, the functional properties of Zanthoxylum bungeanum seed protein improved significantly: the water holding capacity increased by 89%, the oil holding capacity by 68%, while the emulsifying activity and stability indices improved by 6% and 17%, respectively. The macromolecular proteins in the seeds of Zanthoxylum bungeanum were effectively broken down into smaller fragments during fermentation, resulting in a more folded and porous surface structure. In acute toxicity tests, all mice treated with fermented Zanthoxum seed protein survived for more than 7 days after injection, and there were no significant differences in body weight, organ index, and hematological tests between groups, but FZBSP of 1.5 g/kg~12 g/kg caused varying degrees of steatosis and inflammatory damage in the heart and liver. In conclusion, this study confirms that follow-up pilot studies using 1.5 g/kg FZBSP have the potential for further development and utilization.