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CEN Case Reports Jun 2024A 62-year-old man visited his primary care physician with the complaints of loss of appetite and fatigue. He was admitted to our hospital based on a diagnosis of acute...
A 62-year-old man visited his primary care physician with the complaints of loss of appetite and fatigue. He was admitted to our hospital based on a diagnosis of acute kidney injury, Fanconi syndrome as indicated by hypokalemia, hypouricemia, hypophosphatemia, elevated glucose levels in urine, and aminoaciduria. He had been taking multiple supplements, including Red Yeast Rice Cholesterol Help®, for one and a half years. After admission, all the supplements were stopped. Blood samples were collected; however, the samples were negative for diseases that could cause Fanconi syndrome. Renal biopsy revealed renal proximal tubular damage, mainly characterized by simplification of the proximal tubular epithelium. The mycotoxin, citrinin, which is reported to be produced by the mold used for producing red yeast rice, but not the mold Monascus pilosus used for Red Yeast Rice Cholesterol Help, reportedly causes proximal tubular damage. However, although the causative agent has not been identified, it was thought that a substance similar to citrinin, produced by the mold used for Red Yeast Rice Cholesterol Help®, caused proximal tubular damage, leading to acute kidney injury and Fanconi syndrome. Hence, all supplements were stopped, and the patient was treated with oral potassium and phosphorus preparations, leading to gradual recovery of his kidney function. We herein report the first case of acute kidney injury and Fanconi syndrome in a patient taking multiple health supplements, including Red Yeast Rice Cholesterol Help®. Early discontinuation of the oral supplements was probably useful in improving the patient's kidney function.
PubMed: 38900361
DOI: 10.1007/s13730-024-00903-0 -
Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety Jun 2024T-2 toxin is one of trichothecene mycotoxins, which can impair appetite and decrease food intake. However, the specific mechanisms for T-2 toxin-induced anorexia are not...
T-2 toxin is one of trichothecene mycotoxins, which can impair appetite and decrease food intake. However, the specific mechanisms for T-2 toxin-induced anorexia are not fully clarified. Multiple research results had shown that gut microbiota have a significant effect on appetite regulation. Hence, this study purposed to explore the potential interactions of the gut microbiota and appetite regulate factors in anorexia induced by T-2 toxin. The study divided the mice into control group (CG, 0 mg/kg BW T-2 toxin) and T-2 toxin-treated group (TG, 1 mg/kg BW T-2 toxin), which oral gavage for 4 weeks, to construct a subacute T-2 toxin poisoning mouse model. This data proved that T-2 toxin was able to induce an anorexia in mice by increased the contents of gastrointestinal hormones (CCK, GIP, GLP-1 and PYY), neurotransmitters (5-HT and SP), as well as pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α) in serum of mice. T-2 toxin disturbed the composition of gut microbiota, especially, Faecalibaculum and Allobaculum, which was positively correlated with CCK, GLP-1, 5-HT, IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α, which played a certain role in regulating host appetite. In conclusion, gut microbiota changes (especially an increase in the abundance of Faecalibaculum and Allobaculum) promote the upregulation of gastrointestinal hormones, neurotransmitters, and pro-inflammatory cytokines, which may be a potential mechanism of T-2 toxin-induced anorexia.
PubMed: 38896898
DOI: 10.1016/j.ecoenv.2024.116612 -
Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) May 2024Red ginseng is widely used in food and pharmaceuticals due to its significant nutritional value. However, during the processing and storage of red ginseng, it is...
Red ginseng is widely used in food and pharmaceuticals due to its significant nutritional value. However, during the processing and storage of red ginseng, it is susceptible to grow mold and produce mycotoxins, generating security issues. This study proposes a novel approach using hyperspectral imaging technology and a 1D-convolutional neural network-residual-bidirectional-long short-term memory attention mechanism (1DCNN-ResBiLSTM-Attention) for pixel-level mycotoxin recognition in red ginseng. The "Red Ginseng-Mycotoxin" (R-M) dataset is established, and optimal parameters for 1D-CNN, residual bidirectional long short-term memory (ResBiLSTM), and 1DCNN-ResBiLSTM-Attention models are determined. The models achieved testing accuracies of 98.75%, 99.03%, and 99.17%, respectively. To simulate real detection scenarios with potential interfering impurities during the sampling process, a "Red Ginseng-Mycotoxin-Interfering Impurities" (R-M-I) dataset was created. The testing accuracy of the 1DCNN-ResBiLSTM-Attention model reached 96.39%, and it successfully predicted pixel-wise classification for other unknown samples. This study introduces a novel method for real-time mycotoxin monitoring in traditional Chinese medicine, with important implications for the on-site quality control of herbal materials.
Topics: Panax; Mycotoxins; Neural Networks, Computer; Hyperspectral Imaging
PubMed: 38894248
DOI: 10.3390/s24113457 -
International Journal of Molecular... May 2024Foodborne diseases can be attributed not only to contamination with bacterial or fungal pathogens but also their associated toxins. Thus, to maintain food safety,...
Foodborne diseases can be attributed not only to contamination with bacterial or fungal pathogens but also their associated toxins. Thus, to maintain food safety, innovative decontamination techniques for toxins are required. We previously demonstrated that an atmospheric-pressure dielectric-barrier discharge (APDBD) plasma generated by a roller conveyer plasma device is effective at inactivating bacteria and fungi in foods. Here, we have further examined whether the roller conveyer plasma device can be used to degrade toxins produced by foodborne bacterial pathogens, including aflatoxin, Shiga toxins (Stx1 and Stx2), enterotoxin B and cereulide. Each toxin was spotted onto an aluminum plate, allowed to dry, and then treated with APDBD plasma applied by the roller conveyer plasma device for different time periods. Assessments were conducted using a competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). The results demonstrate a significant time-dependent decrease in the levels of these toxins. ELISA showed that aflatoxin B concentrations were reduced from 308.6 µg/mL to 74.4 µg/mL within 1 min. For Shiga toxins, Stx1 decreased from 913.8 µg/mL to 65.1 µg/mL, and Stx2 from 2309.0 µg/mL to 187.6 µg/mL within the same time frame (1 min). Enterotoxin B levels dropped from 62.67 µg/mL to 1.74 µg/mL at 15 min, and 1.43 µg/mL at 30 min, but did not display a significant decrease within 5 min. LC-MS/MS analysis verified that cereulide was reduced to below the detection limit following 30 min of APDBD plasma treatment. Taken together, these findings highlight that a range of foodborne toxins can be degraded by a relatively short exposure to plasma generated by an APDBD using a roller conveyer device. This technology offers promising advancements in food safety, providing a novel method to alleviate toxin contamination in the food processing industry.
Topics: Atmospheric Pressure; Tandem Mass Spectrometry; Enterotoxins; Depsipeptides; Food Microbiology; Chromatography, Liquid; Foodborne Diseases; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; Food Contamination; Plasma Gases; Aflatoxin B1
PubMed: 38892174
DOI: 10.3390/ijms25115986 -
International Journal of Molecular... May 2024Chronic inflammation causes muscle wasting. Because most inflammatory cytokine signals are mediated via TGF-β-activated kinase-1 (TAK1) activation, inflammatory...
Chronic inflammation causes muscle wasting. Because most inflammatory cytokine signals are mediated via TGF-β-activated kinase-1 (TAK1) activation, inflammatory cytokine-induced muscle wasting may be ameliorated by the inhibition of TAK1 activity. The present study was undertaken to clarify whether TAK1 inhibition can ameliorate inflammation-induced muscle wasting. SKG/Jcl mice as an autoimmune arthritis animal model were treated with a small amount of mannan as an adjuvant to enhance the production of TNF-α and IL-1β. The increase in these inflammatory cytokines caused a reduction in muscle mass and strength along with an induction of arthritis in SKG/Jcl mice. Those changes in muscle fibers were mediated via the phosphorylation of TAK1, which activated the downstream signaling cascade via NF-κB, p38 MAPK, and ERK pathways, resulting in an increase in myostatin expression. Myostatin then reduced the expression of muscle proteins not only via a reduction in MyoD1 expression but also via an enhancement of Atrogin-1 and Murf1 expression. TAK1 inhibitor, LL-Z1640-2, prevented all the cytokine-induced changes in muscle wasting. Thus, TAK1 inhibition can be a new therapeutic target of not only joint destruction but also muscle wasting induced by inflammatory cytokines.
Topics: Animals; MAP Kinase Kinase Kinases; Muscular Atrophy; Mice; Cytokines; Muscle Weakness; Myostatin; Muscle Proteins; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; NF-kappa B; Inflammation; Signal Transduction; Tripartite Motif Proteins; Disease Models, Animal; Interleukin-1beta; Phosphorylation; Muscle, Skeletal; Zearalenone
PubMed: 38891908
DOI: 10.3390/ijms25115715 -
Plants (Basel, Switzerland) May 2024As climate changes and a growing global population continue to escalate the need for greater production capabilities of food crops, technological advances in... (Review)
Review
As climate changes and a growing global population continue to escalate the need for greater production capabilities of food crops, technological advances in agricultural and crop research will remain a necessity. While great advances in crop improvement over the past century have contributed to massive increases in yield, classic breeding schemes lack the rate of genetic gain needed to meet future demands. In the past decade, new breeding techniques and tools have been developed to aid in crop improvement. One such advancement is the use of speed breeding. Speed breeding is known as the application of methods that significantly reduce the time between crop generations, thereby streamlining breeding and research efforts. These rapid-generation advancement tactics help to accelerate the pace of crop improvement efforts to sustain food security and meet the food, feed, and fiber demands of the world's growing population. Speed breeding may be achieved through a variety of techniques, including environmental optimization, genomic selection, CRISPR-Cas9 technology, and epigenomic tools. This review aims to discuss these prominent advances in crop breeding technologies and techniques that have the potential to greatly improve plant breeders' ability to rapidly produce vital cultivars.
PubMed: 38891328
DOI: 10.3390/plants13111520 -
Cells May 2024causes destructive crown disease in wheat. The velvet protein family is a crucial regulator in development, virulence, and secondary metabolism of fungi. We conducted a...
causes destructive crown disease in wheat. The velvet protein family is a crucial regulator in development, virulence, and secondary metabolism of fungi. We conducted a functional analysis of FpVelB using a gene replacement strategy. The deletion of decreased radial growth and enhanced conidial production compared to that of wild type. Furthermore, FpVelB modulates the fungal responses to abiotic stress through diverse mechanisms. Significantly, virulence decreased after the deletion of in both the stem base and head of wheat. Genome-wide gene expression profiling revealed that the regulation of genes by FpVelB is associated with several processes related to the aforementioned phenotype, including "immune", "membrane", and "antioxidant activity", particularly with regard to secondary metabolites. Most importantly, we demonstrated that FpVelB regulates pathogen virulence by influencing deoxynivalenol production and modulating the expression of the gene. In conclusion, FpVelB is crucial for plant growth, asexual development, and abiotic stress response and is essential for full virulence via secondary metabolism in .
Topics: Fusarium; Secondary Metabolism; Fungal Proteins; Virulence; Gene Expression Regulation, Fungal; Plant Diseases; Triticum; Stress, Physiological; Trichothecenes; Spores, Fungal
PubMed: 38891082
DOI: 10.3390/cells13110950 -
Cells May 2024The fungi is found in cereals and feedstuffs and may produce mycotoxins, which are secondary metabolites, such as the T-2 toxin (T-2). In this work, we explored the...
The fungi is found in cereals and feedstuffs and may produce mycotoxins, which are secondary metabolites, such as the T-2 toxin (T-2). In this work, we explored the hepatotoxicity of T-2 using microfluidic 3D hepatic cultures. The objectives were: (i) exploring the benefits of microfluidic 3D cultures compared to conventional 3D cultures available commercially (Aggrewell plates), (ii) establishing 3D co-cultures of hepatic cells (HepG2) and stellate cells (LX2) and assessing T-2 exposure in this model, (iii) characterizing the induction of metabolizing enzymes, and (iv) evaluating inflammatory markers upon T-2 exposure in microfluidic hepatic cultures. Our results demonstrated that, in comparison to commercial (large-volume) 3D cultures, spheroids formed faster and were more functional in microfluidic devices. The viability and hepatic function decreased with increasing T-2 concentrations in both monoculture and co-cultures. The RT-PCR analysis revealed that exposure to T-2 upregulates the expression of multiple Phase I and Phase II hepatic enzymes. In addition, several pro- and anti-inflammatory proteins were increased in co-cultures after exposure to T-2.
Topics: T-2 Toxin; Humans; Hep G2 Cells; Spheroids, Cellular; Liver; Coculture Techniques; Microfluidics; Hepatocytes; Cell Survival
PubMed: 38891032
DOI: 10.3390/cells13110900 -
Foods (Basel, Switzerland) Jun 2024Mycotoxins are well-known secondary metabolites produced by several fungi that grow and occur in different crops during both pre-harvest and post-harvest conditions. The... (Review)
Review
Mycotoxins are well-known secondary metabolites produced by several fungi that grow and occur in different crops during both pre-harvest and post-harvest conditions. The contamination and occurrence of mycotoxins currently represent some of the major issues in the entire agri-food system. The quantification of mycotoxins in different feeds and foodstuffs is extremely difficult because of the low concentration ranges; therefore, both sample collection and preparation are essential to providing accurate detection and reliable quantification. Currently, several analytical methods are available for the detection of mycotoxins in both feed and food products, and liquid chromatography coupled with high-resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS) represents the most reliable instrumental approach. In particular, the fast development of high-throughput methods has made it possible to screen and analyze, in the same analytical run and with high accuracy, multiple mycotoxins, such as those regulated, masked, or modified, and emerging ones. Therefore, the aim of this review is to provide an overview of the state of the art of mycotoxins occurrence, health-related concerns, and analyses, discussing the need to perform multi-screening approaches combined with omics technologies to simultaneously analyze several mycotoxins in different feed and food matrices. This approach is expected to provide more comprehensive information about the profile and distribution of emerging mycotoxins, thus enhancing the understanding of their co-occurrence and impact on the entire production chain.
PubMed: 38890974
DOI: 10.3390/foods13111746 -
Foods (Basel, Switzerland) May 2024In this study, a critical review was carried out using the Web of Science Core Collection database to analyse the scientific literature published to date to identify... (Review)
Review
In this study, a critical review was carried out using the Web of Science Core Collection database to analyse the scientific literature published to date to identify lines of research and future perspectives on the presence of chemical pollutants in beer brewing. Beer is one of the world's most popular drinks and the most consumed alcoholic beverage. However, a widespread challenge with potential implications for human and animal health is the presence of physical, chemical, and/or microbiological contaminants in beer. Biogenic amines, heavy metals, mycotoxins, nitrosamines, pesticides, acrylamide, phthalates, bisphenols, microplastics, and, to a lesser extent, hydrocarbons (aliphatic chlorinated and polycyclic aromatic), carbonyls, furan-derivatives, polychlorinated biphenyls, and trihalomethanes are the main chemical pollutants found during the beer brewing process. Pollution sources include raw materials, technological process steps, the brewery environment, and packaging materials. Different chemical pollutants have been found during the beer brewing process, from barley to beer. Brewing steps such as steeping, kilning, mashing, boiling, fermentation, and clarification are critical in reducing the levels of many of these pollutants. As a result, their residual levels are usually below the maximum levels allowed by international regulations. Therefore, this work was aimed at assessing how chemical pollutants appear and evolve in the brewing process, according to research developed in the last few decades.
PubMed: 38890939
DOI: 10.3390/foods13111709