Zheng Luo

The National Genomics Data Center (NGDC), which is a part of the China National Center for Bioinformation (CNCB), offers a comprehensive suite of database resources to support the global scientific community. Amidst the unprecedented accumulation of multi-omics data, CNCB-NGDC is committed to continually evolving and updating its core database resources through big data archiving, integrative analysis and value-added curation. Over the past year, CNCB-NGDC has expanded its collaborations with international databases and established new subcenters focusing on biodiversity, traditional Chinese medicine and tumor genetics. Substantial efforts have been made toward encompassing a broad spectrum of multi-omics data, developing innovative resources and enhancing existing resources. Notably, new resources have been developed for single-cell omics (scTWAS Atlas), genome and variation (VDGE), health and disease (CVD Atlas, CPMKG, Immunosenescence Inventory, HemAtlas, Cyclicpepedia, IDeAS), biodiversity and biosynthesis (RefMetaPlant, MASH-Ocean) and research tools (CCLHunter). All resources and services are publicly accessible at https://ngdc.cncb.ac.cn.

A clean x-ray radiation environment is essential for detailed measurements of the opacity of high-temperature radiatively heated material. A lot of laser energy is usually needed to heat a large hohlraum to produce such a clean x-ray radiation environment. A type of target is proposed that uses low-density, low-Z foam to provide a passage to radiation while isolating the sample from the disturbance from laser produced, high-temperature, high-Z plasma and heating by reflected laser light. With a smaller hohlraum, less laser energy is needed to produce high-temperature x-ray radiation for sample heating. Experiments have been done to check the proposal. The recorded clean Al self-emission spectra proved there was no gold plasma in the view-way to disturb the measurement. This type of hohlraum can provide a high-quality work-table for opacity measurement even in a relatively small laser facility.

Deoxygenative cross-coupling between unactivated C–O and unsaturated C═O electrophiles remains an unsolved challenge in synthetic chemistry. Here, we report the deoxygenative cross-coupling of C–O/C═O electrophiles by reaction of unactivated aryl esters with unsaturated amides, enabled by chromium catalysis. Inexpensive and simple CrCl3 salt combined with bipyridine ligand, magnesium reductant, and chlorosilane, shows high reactivity in promoting the deoxygenative coupling between C–O and C═O bonds involving hydrogen transfer. This reaction provides a strategy to form pharmaceutically interesting diarylmethylated amines, by forging C(sp2)–C(sp3) bonds with impeding the competing ester homocoupling and carbonyl reduction that usually occur under reductive conditions. Mechanistic studies based on high-resolution mass spectrometry analysis and deuterium-labeling experiments indicate that cleavage of ester C–O bonds by Cr and subsequent silylation leads to the formation of arylated silachromate, which regioselectively adds to carbonyls of amides through reductive elimination and deoxygenative hydrogen transfer, resulting in the reductive cross-coupling of C(aryl)–O and C(amide)═O electrophiles.

Thioacetamide (TAA) within the liver generates hepatotoxic metabolites that can be induce hepatic fibrosis, similar to the clinical pathological features of chronic human liver disease. The potential protective effect of Albiflorin (ALB), a monoterpenoid glycoside found in Paeonia lactiflora Pall, against hepatic fibrosis was investigated. The mouse hepatic fibrosis model was induced with an intraperitoneal injection of TAA. Hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) were subjected to treatment with transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β), while lipopolysaccharide/adenosine triphosphate (LPS/ATP) was added to stimulate mouse peritoneal macrophages (MPMs), leading to the acquisition of conditioned medium. For TAA-treated mice, ALB reduced ALT, AST, HYP levels in serum or liver. The administration of ALB reduced histopathological abnormalities, and significantly regulated the expressions of nuclear receptor-related 1 protein (NURR1) and the P2X purinoceptor 7 receptor (P2×7r) in liver. ALB could suppress HSCs epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), extracellular matrix (ECM) deposition, and pro-inflammatory factor level. ALB also remarkably up-regulated NURR1, inhibited P2×7r signaling pathway, and worked as working as C-DIM12, a NURR1 agonist. Moreover, deficiency of NURR1 in activated HSCs and Kupffer cells weakened the regulatory effect of ALB on P2×7r inhibition. NURR1-mediated inhibition of inflammatory contributed to the regulation of ALB ameliorates TAA-induced hepatic fibrosis, especially based on involving in the crosstalk of HSCs-macrophage. Therefore, ALB plays a significant part in the mitigation of TAA-induced hepatotoxicity this highlights the potential of ALB as a protective intervention for hepatic fibrosis.

Coupling by metal–carbene transfer enables the formation of several different bonds at the carbenoid site, enabling prochiral Csp3 centers that are fundamental three-dimensional substructures for medicines to be forged with increased efficiency. However, strategies using bulk chemicals are rare because of the challenge of breaking two unactivated geminal bonds. Herein, we report the reactivity of ethers to form metal–carbene intermediate by cleavage of α-Csp3–H/Csp3–O bonds, which achieve selective coupling with arylmagnesium bromides and chlorosilanes. These couplings are catalysed by cyclic (alkyl)(amino)carbene-chromium complex and enable the one-step formation of 1,n-arylsilyl alcohols and α-arylated silanes. Mechanistic studies indicate that the in-situ formed low-valent Cr might react with iodobenzene to form phenyl radical species, which abstracts the α-H atom of ether in giving α-oxy radical. The latter combines with Cr by breaking α-Csp3–O bond to afford metal–carbene intermediate, which couples with aryl Grignard and chlorosilane to form two σ-bonds. Harnessing carbenoid intermediates during organic transformations is an essential strategy for catalysis but strategies using bulk chemicals are rare due to the challenge of breaking two unactivated geminal bonds. Here, the authors report the reactivity of readily available ethers to form a metal–carbene intermediate via radical-relay bond cleavage.