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Topic Review
Lignans
This entry focuses on lignans, a non-flavonoid polyphenolic class found in plant foods for human nutrition, recently studied as potential modulators of the gut-brain axis. In particular, gut bacterial metabolism is able to convert dietary lignans into therapeutically relevant polyphenols (i.e., enterolignans), such as enterolactone and enterodiol. Enterolignans are characterized by various biologic activities, including tissue-specific estrogen receptor activation, together with anti-inflammatory and apoptotic effects. The variability in enterolignans production by the gut microbiota is strictly related to both bioaccessibility and bioavailability of parent lignans through the entire gastrointestinal tract. 
  • 1.6K
  • 06 Jan 2021
Topic Review
Organic and Inorganic Nanoparticles in Foods
Inorganic or organic nanoparticles are often incorporated into foods to enhance their quality, stability, nutrition, or safety. When they pass through the gastrointestinal environment, the properties of these nanoparticles are altered, which impacts their biological effects and potential toxicity. Consequently, there is a need to understand how different kinds of nanoparticles behave within the gastrointestinal tract.
  • 1.6K
  • 07 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Nanotechnology in the Food Industry
The efficient progress in nanotechnology has transformed many aspects of food science and the food industry with enhanced investment and market share. Recent advances in nanomaterials and nanodevices such as nanosensors, nano-emulsions, nanopesticides or nanocapsules are intended to bring about innovative applications in the food industry. In this entry, the current applications of nanotechnology for packaging, processing, and the enhancement of the nutritional value and shelf life of foods are targeted. In addition, the functionality and applicability of food-related nanotechnologies are also highlighted and critically discussed in order to provide an insight into the development and evaluation of the safety of nanotechnology in the food industry.
  • 1.6K
  • 13 Dec 2020
Topic Review
Sigma-2 Receptor
Sigma-1 and sigma-2 receptor have different pharmacological profiles. In the past two decades,  the biological and pharmacological properties of the sigma-1 receptor has been well studied, however, little is known about the sigma-2 receptor. The molecular identity of Sigma-2 receptor has been proposed as TMEM97, but more work has to been done to address questions regarding our current knowledge of Sigma-2 pharmacology. Recently, the sigma-2 receptor is recognized as a novel regulator influencing cellular cholesterol homeostasis. Additionally, cholesterol homeostasis was disrupted in tumors and Alzheimer’s disease, and the sigma-2 receptor ligands have showed promise to treat tumors and AD. 
  • 1.6K
  • 08 Dec 2020
Topic Review
Ferroptosis in Liver Diseases
Ferroptosis is an iron-dependent form of cell death characterized by intracellular lipid peroxide accumulation and redox imbalance. Ferroptosis shows specific biological and morphological features when compared to the other cell death patterns. The loss of lipid peroxide repair activity by glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4), the presence of redox-active iron and the oxidation of polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA)-containing phospholipids are considered as distinct fingerprints of ferroptosis. Several pathways, including amino acid and iron metabolism, ferritinophagy, cell adhesion, p53, Keap1/Nrf2 and phospholipid biosynthesis, can modify susceptibility to ferroptosis. Through the decades, various diseases, including acute kidney injury; cancer; ischemia-reperfusion injury; and cardiovascular, neurodegenerative and hepatic disorders, have been associated with ferroptosis. Here, we provide a short overview of the main biological and biochemical mechanisms of ferroptosis. The contribution of ferroptosis to the spectrum of liver diseases, acute or chronic is also reported. Finally, we discuss the use of ferroptosis as a therapeutic approach against hepatocellular carcinoma, the most common form of primary liver cancer.
  • 1.6K
  • 21 Jul 2020
Topic Review
Chelicerata
The subphylum Chelicerata (from New Latin, from fr chélicère, from grc χηλή (Script error: No such module "Ancient Greek".) 'claw, chela', and κέρας (Script error: No such module "Ancient Greek".) 'horn') constitutes one of the major subdivisions of the phylum Arthropoda. It contains the sea spiders, horseshoe crabs, and arachnids (including harvestmen, scorpions, spiders, solifuges, ticks, and mites, among many others), as well as a number of extinct lineages, such as the eurypterids (sea scorpions) and chasmataspidids. The Chelicerata originated as marine animals in the Middle Cambrian period; the first confirmed chelicerate fossils, belonging to Sanctacaris, date from 508 million years ago. The surviving marine species include the four species of xiphosurans (horseshoe crabs), and possibly the 1,300 species of pycnogonids (sea spiders), if the latter are indeed chelicerates. On the other hand, there are over 77,000 well-identified species of air-breathing chelicerates, and there may be about 500,000 unidentified species. Like all arthropods, chelicerates have segmented bodies with jointed limbs, all covered in a cuticle made of chitin and proteins. The chelicerate body plan consists of two tagmata, the prosoma and the opisthosoma, except that mites have lost a visible division between these sections. The chelicerae, which give the group its name, are the only appendages that appear before the mouth. In most sub-groups, they are modest pincers used to feed. However, spiders' chelicerae form fangs that most species use to inject venom into prey. The group has the open circulatory system typical of arthropods, in which a tube-like heart pumps blood through the hemocoel, which is the major body cavity. Marine chelicerates have gills, while the air-breathing forms generally have both book lungs and tracheae. In general, the ganglia of living chelicerates' central nervous systems fuse into large masses in the cephalothorax, but there are wide variations and this fusion is very limited in the Mesothelae, which are regarded as the oldest and most basal group of spiders. Most chelicerates rely on modified bristles for touch and for information about vibrations, air currents, and chemical changes in their environment. The most active hunting spiders also have very acute eyesight. Chelicerates were originally predators, but the group has diversified to use all the major feeding strategies: predation, parasitism, herbivory, scavenging and eating decaying organic matter. Although harvestmen can digest solid food, the guts of most modern chelicerates are too narrow for this, and they generally liquidize their food by grinding it with their chelicerae and pedipalps and flooding it with digestive enzymes. To conserve water, air-breathing chelicerates excrete waste as solids that are removed from their blood by Malpighian tubules, structures that also evolved independently in insects. While the marine horseshoe crabs rely on external fertilization, air-breathing chelicerates use internal but usually indirect fertilization. Many species use elaborate courtship rituals to attract mates. Most lay eggs that hatch as what look like miniature adults, but all scorpions and a few species of mites keep the eggs inside their bodies until the young emerge. In most chelicerate species the young have to fend for themselves, but in scorpions and some species of spider the females protect and feed their young. The evolutionary origins of chelicerates from the early arthropods have been debated for decades. Although there is considerable agreement about the relationships between most chelicerate sub-groups, the inclusion of the Pycnogonida in this taxon has recently been questioned (see below), and the exact position of scorpions is still controversial, though they were long considered the most basal of the arachnids. Venom has evolved three times in the chelicerates; spiders, scorpions and pseudoscorpions, or four times if the hematophagous secretions produced by ticks are included. In addition there have been undocumented descriptions of venom glands in Solifugae. Chemical defense has been found in whip scorpions, shorttailed whipscorpions, harvestmen, beetle mites and sea spiders. Although the venom of a few spider and scorpion species can be very dangerous to humans, medical researchers are investigating the use of these venoms for the treatment of disorders ranging from cancer to erectile dysfunction. The medical industry also uses the blood of horseshoe crabs as a test for the presence of contaminant bacteria. Mites can cause allergies in humans, transmit several diseases to humans and their livestock, and are serious agricultural pests.
  • 1.6K
  • 18 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Abiotic Stress in Plants
Abiotic stress in plants is a crucial issue worldwide, especially heavy-metal contaminants, salinity, and drought. These stresses may raise a lot of issues such as the generation of reactive oxygen species, membrane damage, loss of photosynthetic efficiency, etc. that could alter crop growth and developments by affecting biochemical, physiological, and molecular processes, causing a significant loss in productivity. To overcome the impact of these abiotic stressors, many strategies could be considered to support plant growth including the use of nanoparticles (NPs). However, the majority of studies have focused on understanding the toxicity of NPs on aquatic flora and fauna, and relatively less attention has been paid to the topic of the beneficial role of NPs in plants stress response, growth, and development. More scientific attention is required to understand the behavior of NPs on crops under these stress conditions. 
  • 1.6K
  • 19 Jul 2021
Topic Review
Genome-Editing Systems in Rice Improvement
Food crop production and quality are two major attributes that ensure food security. Rice is one of the major sources of food that feeds half of the world’s population. Therefore, to feed about 10 billion people by 2050, there is a need to develop high-yielding grain quality of rice varieties, with greater pace. Although conventional and mutation breeding techniques have played a significant role in the development of desired varieties in the past, due to certain limitations, these techniques cannot fulfill the high demands for food in the present era. However, rice production and grain quality can be improved by employing new breeding techniques, such as genome editing tools (GETs), with high efficiency. These tools, including clustered, regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) systems, have revolutionized rice breeding. The protocol of CRISPR/Cas9 systems technology, and its variants, are the most reliable and efficient, and have been established in rice crops. New GETs, such as CRISPR/Cas12, and base editors, have also been applied to rice to improve it. Recombinases and prime editing tools have the potential to make edits more precisely and efficiently. 
  • 1.6K
  • 13 Jul 2021
Topic Review
Lories and Lorikeets
Lories and lorikeets (tribe Loriini) are small to medium-sized arboreal parrots characterized by their specialized brush-tipped tongues for feeding on nectar of various blossoms and soft fruits, preferably berries. The species form a monophyletic group within the parrot family Psittacidae. Traditionally, they were considered a separate subfamily (Loriinae) from the other subfamily (Psittacinae) based on the specialized characteristics, but recent molecular and morphological studies show that the group is positioned in the middle of various other groups. They are widely distributed throughout the Australasian region, including south-eastern Asia, Polynesia, Papua New Guinea, Timor Leste and Australia , and the majority have very brightly coloured plumage.
  • 1.6K
  • 21 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Advantages and Disadvantages of Commercial Rootstocks for Peaches
Prunus is a genus from the Rosaceae family that encompasses about 230 species that are widely distributed across the world. Three-quarters of the Prunus species are native to Asia, Europe, and North America, and the remaining other species are native to the subtropical and tropical forests of Asia, Africa, South America, and Australia. The most common recent ancestor of Amygdalus was widespread from West Asia to Eastern Asia (China) ~50 million years ago, with a subsequent diversification into almonds in West Asia and peaches in Eastern Asia.
  • 1.6K
  • 15 Jul 2022
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