Radiation-induced brain injury (RBI) is a severe complication of cranial radiotherapy that poses a significant clinical challenge due to a lack of effective treatments. Ferroptosis, an oxidative stress-driven cell death pathway, has been implicated in its pathogenesis. Here, we report that 75% ethanol (GBF-8), a novel subfraction isolated from male Ginkgo biloba flowers, confers significant protection against RBI. In a murine RBI model, GBF-8 administration restored cognitive function and alleviated neuroinflammation. We demonstrated that this neuroprotective effect is mechanistically linked to ferroptosis inhibition. Integrated proteomic and metabolomic profiling identified the Solute carrier family 7 member 11 (Slc7a11)–Eukaryotic Translation Initiation Factor 4E Binding Protein 1 (Eif4ebp1) axis as the primary target of GBF-8. This work not only establishes GBF-8 as a promising therapeutic candidate but also delineates a previously unrecognized regulatory axis for combating ferroptosis in RBI.

A high-purity alkaloid-enriched extract (NPAE) was developed from Nelumbinis Plumula. Beyond quantifying its representative alkaloids and total alkaloid content, this study revealed the novel radioprotective role of NPAE against radiation-induced oxidative stress in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). Pretreatment with NPAE significantly attenuated H₂O₂-induced oxidative stress and suppressed irradiation-induced pyroptosis, primarily through restoration of redox homeostasis and inhibition of inflammasome activation. Mechanistic investigations showed that NPAE downregulated the expression of GSDMD-N and cleaved caspase-1, while reducing the secretion of proinflammatory cytokines (IL-18 and IL-1β). These results demonstrate that NPAE effectively alleviates oxidative damage and prevents pyroptosis in endothelial cells, highlighting its potential as a promising phytotherapeutic agent for protection against ionizing radiation injury.

Irradiation (IR) can cause intestinal epithelial cell death, damage to crypt stem cells, and mucosal barrier dysfunction, which are the features of radiation-induced intestinal injury (RIII). Our study first discovered a natural small-molecule alkaloid Orychophragine D (OV16) with an obvious radiation protection effect. This study aims to investigate the radiation protection effect of OV16 on RIII and its potential molecular mechanism. The results showed that in vitro OV16 exhibited a significant protective effect on an irradiated human small intestinal epithelial cell-6 (HIEC-6) model. Then, transglutaminase 2 (TGM2), which is the key protein for OV16 to exert its anti-RIII protective effect, was identified as a crucial cellular target of OV16 using drug affinity responsive target stability (DARTS), molecular docking, molecular dynamics simulation, cell thermal shift assay (CETSA), and microscale thermophoresis (MST). Moreover, OV16 can upregulate the expression level of TGM2 in the nucleus of HIEC-6. TGM2 can reduce radiation-induced damage by enhancing the proliferation ability and migration ability of HIEC-6 and reducing the generation of γ-H2AX. Collectively, our study first identified TGM2 as a previously unreported therapeutic target for RIII, and provided a future drug design direction for TGM2 allosteric activators using OV16 as a novel molecular template.

Diabetic wounds are a common complication of diabetes mellitus (DM), with healing often impaired by ferroptosis and persistent inflammation. This study investigated the effects of Ginkgo biloba flower extract (GBF) on diabetic wound healing by focusing on inflammation and ferroptosis. Chemical composition analysis identified 123 compounds in GBF containing 73 active ingredients of flavonoids and 12 terpenoids. In vivo, GBF treatment significantly accelerated the wound healing process in diabetic rats, and GBF promoted epithelial regeneration and collagen deposition by increasing the expression of CD31 and VEGF. It also enhanced the formation of new blood vessels. Mechanistically, GBF could inhibit the inflammatory response by reducing the levels of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6), and inhibit the oxidative stress-induced ferroptosis by increasing the levels of glutathione (GSH) and glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4). Proteomics analysis further confirmed its regulatory effects on inflammation and iron metabolism pathways. In vitro, GBF promoted the survival and migration of rat skin fibroblasts (RS1) while reducing the levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and Fe²⁺ in erastin-induced ferroptosis cells. In conclusion, GBF promotes diabetic wound healing by inhibiting ferroptosis and inflammation.

The separation of xenon (Xe) and krypton (Kr) is very important for industrial applications and environmental protection. However, the lack of permanent dipoles, low polarizabilities arising from their spherical nature, and similar kinetic diameters make their efficient separation by porous adsorbents exceptionally challenging. This study explored the effects of pore geometry and surface polarity of a series of aluminum-based metal–organic frameworks (CAU-10-H, MIL-160, KMF-1, CAU-23) on Xe/Kr separation performance using a heteroatom engineering strategy. These MOFs are composed of AlO₆ clusters and bent dicarboxylic acid linkers, enabling us to systematically investigate the effects of pore size and heteroatom types on Xe/Kr separation performance. Among them, MIL-160 has a polar linker based on furan, showing the best balance performance. At 298 K and 1.0 bar, the uptake of Xe is 4.12 mmol g⁻¹ and the IAST selectivity is 7.63 for a Xe/Kr (20/80) mixture. The practical performance was verified by dynamic breakthrough experiments, which yielded a long Xe breakthrough time of 42.9 min g⁻¹. Grand Canonical Monte Carlo (GCMC) simulations and first-principles density functional theory (DFT) calculations revealed that the enhanced performance originates from cooperative confinement and polarization effects, with the furanyl oxygen atoms providing optimal Xe-binding sites. This work clarifies the structure–property relationships governing Xe/Kr separation in aluminum-based MOFs (Al-MOFs), highlighting the potential of heteroatom engineering for designing efficient noble gas adsorbents.

Gingerol-rich extract derived from Zingiber officinale Roscoe (ZOGE) is clinically effective against motion sickness (MS), yet its mechanism remains unknown. Here, we demonstrate that ZOGE confers protection by modulating a specific gut–brain immune–neuroendocrine pathway. Using a rotation-induced rat model combined with behavioral tests, vestibular nuclei (VN) metabolomics, and molecular analyses, we found that ZOGE not only alleviated MS symptoms and normalized VN metabolic disturbances, particularly in phenylalanine, tyrosine, and tryptophan biosynthesis, but also potently suppressed the peripheral IL-33/ST2/PLC-γ1/TRPA1 signaling axis in the ileum, leading to reduced synthesis and release of 5-HT, a key MS mediator. Our study provides the evidence that ZOGE acts through coordinated central metabolic modulation and peripheral inhibition of a defined pro-emetic pathway, establishing a novel gut–brain immune–neuroendocrine mechanism for its therapeutic efficacy against MS.