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Research Article
- Impact of single ethanol administration following 12-Hour fasting on hepatic Sulfur-containing amino acid metabolism in mice
- Jiwon Hwang, Yubin Song, Doyoung Kwon
- Alcoholic liver disease (ALD) resulting from acute and chronic ethanol intake is a major global cause of liver disorders. ALD is characterized …
- Alcoholic liver disease (ALD) resulting from acute and chronic ethanol intake is a major global cause of liver disorders. ALD is characterized by hepatic injury and steatosis, which are closely associated with the dysregulation of hepatic sulfur-containing amino acid (S-amino acid) metabolism. Among mouse models of binge drinking, a single ethanol administration following 12-hour fasting is frequently employed to evaluate the therapeutic potential of bioactive substances against ALD. However, the effects of ethanol on hepatic S-amino acid metabolism in this model remain unexplored. In this study, male C57BL/6 mice were fasted for 12 hours and then orally administered either saline or ethanol (5 g/kg). Hepatotoxicity, fat accumulation, and changes in hepatic S-amino acid levels and related metabolites were analyzed. Ethanol treatment increased serum alanine aminotransferase activity and hepatic triglyceride levels while decreasing hepatic glutathione levels and the glutathione/oxidized glutathione ratio, indicating hepatocellular damage, steatosis, and oxidative stress. Ethanol also elevated hepatic homocysteine and taurine levels while reducing serine, cystathionine, cysteine, glycine, and glutathione concentrations, suggesting inhibition of transsulfuration and glutathione biosynthesis. These findings suggest that ethanol-induced abnormalities in S-amino acid metabolism may contribute to hepatotoxicity and fat accumulation in this acute ethanol mouse model. Further studies are needed to elucidate the precise molecular mechanisms linking these metabolic alterations to ALD pathogenesis. - COLLAPSE
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Research Article
- An overview on floral diversity of Lakshadweep islands
- Priyanka Ingle
- The spectacular Lakshadweep archipelago is the smallest Union territory of India. This archipelago consists of 36 islands, 12 atolls, 3 reefs and …
- The spectacular Lakshadweep archipelago is the smallest Union territory of India. This archipelago consists of 36 islands, 12 atolls, 3 reefs and 5 submerged sand banks in the Arabian Sea spread over an area of about 32 km2. Out of 36 islands only 11 are inhabited. These islands are similar in floristic composition due to prevalence of similar type of soil, climate and rainfall in all these islands. The present floristic study recorded 488 angiospermic taxa from Lakshadweep Islands, based on the field surveys, herbarium studies and published literature. The flora is represented by 309 genera under 92 families. Among these, there are 380 taxa belonging to dicots (78%) represented by 244 genera and 72 families and 108 taxa (22%) belonging to monocots which are represented by 65 genera under 20 families. The five endemic taxa are reported from Lakshadweep islands of which Cyperus pachyrrhizus var. humei is endemic to Lakshadweep islands only. The five dominant families are viz., Fabaceae, Poaceae, Asteraceae, Malvaceae, Cyperaceae. The five dominant genera are viz. Crotalaria, Cyperus, Euphorbia, Ipomoea and Phyllanthus. The natural flora of Lakshadweep comprises littoral or strand vegetation of aquatic angiosperms, the shore possesses creepers followed by few grasses. The lagoon side or western side of islands is dominated by littoral species like Volkameria inermis, Ipomoea pes-caprae, Launaea sarmentosa, Pemphis acidula, Scaevola taccada, Spinifex littoreus and Suriana maritima while eastern shore is dominated by Cordia subcordata and Guettarda speciosa. The middle portion of the islands is dominated by coconut trees. Other species include Artocarpus altilis, Colubrina asiatica and Thespesia populnea, etc. Different developmental activities have deteriorated the ecosystems in the islands. Thus, urgent concerted efforts should be undertaken to conserve this comparatively pristine and fragile ecosystem. There is only one protected area, viz., Pitti (Bird Island) Wildlife Sanctuary (0.01 km2) and islands such as Andrott, Kalpeni and Minicoy may be declared as protected areas as they have comparatively good patches of forests with species diversity. Degraded areas should be reclaimed with suitable native species. - COLLAPSE
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Review
- Metabolic engineering of microorganisms for enhanced production of metalloporphyrins
- Young Jin Ko, Sung Ok Han
- Metalloporphyrins are versatile macrocyclic molecules with wide-ranging applications in biotechnology, medicine, and renewable energy. This review provides recent advances in the biosynthetic …
- Metalloporphyrins are versatile macrocyclic molecules with wide-ranging applications in biotechnology, medicine, and renewable energy. This review provides recent advances in the biosynthetic pathways of porphyrins, including newly uncovered biosynthetic routes, and explores the production of metalloporphyrins through advanced metabolic engineering of microorganisms. Strategies include optimizing precursor biosynthesis, regulating pathway bottlenecks, and engineering tolerance mechanisms to address cytotoxicity. Specific metabolic achievements include the integration of heterologous pathways to enhance precursor availability, CRISPR-assisted adaptive evolution to mitigate reactive oxygen species (ROS) toxicity, and global transcriptional regulation to improve porphyrin metabolism. Notably, optimized fed-batch fermentations using metabolically engineered microorganisms combined with biocatalaysis achieved yields suitable for industrial-scale production. These innovations provide a sustainable framework for large-scale production of metalloporphyrins, paving the way for their application in therapeutic, industrial, and environmental areas. - COLLAPSE
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Review
- Significant decline in the seaweed and seagrass communities in Kagoshima, Kyushu Island, Japan
- Ryuta Terada
- In Japan, the nationwide long-term monitoring survey for seaweed and seagrass communities (Monitoring-Site 1000, Ministry of Environment, Government of Japan) has been …
- In Japan, the nationwide long-term monitoring survey for seaweed and seagrass communities (Monitoring-Site 1000, Ministry of Environment, Government of Japan) has been conducted at 12 sites since 2008. In Kagoshima Prefecture, located in the southern part of Kyushu Island, a temperate kelp species, Ecklonia radicosa (Kjellman) Okamura (in Nagashima Island), and a seagrass, Zostera marina Linnaeus (in Kagoshima Bay), have been investigated annually over the past 15 years as part of this long-term survey. These communities are considered particularly important because they are situated near their southern distributional limit. However, both communities disappeared in the late 2010s and have not yet recovered. In response to their disappearance, broader distributional surveys were conducted: in 2019 for E. radicosa and in 2021 for Z. marina. The results revealed that E. radicosa had completely disappeared from the coast of Nagashima Island facing the East China Sea despite its distribution in the 2005 survey. It now persists only in sheltered areas of Yatsushiro Bay. Similarly, Z. marina had widely disappeared from Kagoshima Bay despite its distribution in the 2006 survey. Additionally, the area of the seagrass community in Kagoshima Bay was estimated to be 4.39 hectares in the 2019 survey, representing only 11.6% of the area observed in 2006 and a mere 2.4% of the area recorded in 1978. - COLLAPSE
Jeju Journal of Island Sciences
Jeju Journal of Island Sciences
제주섬과학회지
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Tel: +82-64-754-8308 / E-mail: myyang@jejunu.ac.kr Copyright© Jeju Journal of Island Sciences. Powered by APUB
Tel: +82-64-754-8308 / E-mail: myyang@jejunu.ac.kr Copyright© Jeju Journal of Island Sciences. Powered by APUB