•The differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between Cadmium-treated liver cells and controls were screened out and their functional Enrichment Analysis was also conducted.•The hub genes among the DEGs were screened.•The small agents that have a potential to attenuate Cadmium-induced liver cell damage or transformation were predicted.Evidence indicates that Cadmium (Cd) can accumulate in liver, which results in acute or chronic cell damage with unclear complex mechanisms. Thus, we aimed to explore the possible molecules and pathways by using bioinformatics methods Consequently, two datasets (GSE8865 and GSE31286) were retrieved and the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were screened out. The intersection of the DEGs included seven up-regulated and forty-three down-regulated genes, which were mainly enriched in biological cell proliferation items, and were enriched in several metabolism-related pathways. Among the DEGs, several hub genes such as EGR1, FOSL1, ITGA2, EDN1, and IER3 were screened out through protein-protein interaction analysis. Interestingly, BW-B70C was predicted to be a potential agent for attenuating Cd-induced liver cell damage. The present study gave a novel insight into the mechanisms of Cd-induced liver cell damage or malignant transformation and identified several small agents that might be critical for Cd toxicity prevention and treatment.

Cadmium is a heavy metal that has been suggested to be a carcinogen by evidence. A number of published studies have investigated the association between cadmium levels and prostate cancer, but the results were inconsistent. Thus, we conducted a meta-analysis to get a precise estimate of this subject. After a careful searching and screening, a total of 11 publications containing 14 separated studies were included. Based on a random-effect model, the pooled data showed that cadmium levels of prostate tissues (standard mean difference (SMD) = 3.17, 95 % confidence interval (CI) = 0.60–5.74, P < 0.05) and plasma (SMD = 4.07, 95 % CI = 2.01–6.13, P < 0.05) were significantly higher in prostate cancer patients than those in the healthy controls. No difference of hair and nail cadmium levels between the prostate cancer cases and the controls was found. The data suggested that cadmium exposure might exert an influence on the tumorigenesis of prostate tissues. Future investigations with large sample sizes are needed to verify the results.

The effects of sulfur fertilization on the growth profile, the contents of glucosinolates, anthocyanins, vitamin C, carotenoids, chlorophylls, total phenolics, and the FRAP value in radish seeds and sprouts were investigated. The concentrations of glucosinolates and antioxidants in sprouts were strongly influenced by the process of germination. Sulfur fertilization induced significant increases in the contents of individual glucosinolates, carotenoids, chlorophylls, and total phenolics. The phenolic contents in sprouts cultivated using 20, 60, or 100 mg/L sulfate were 20.7%, 40.4%, and 40.8% higher, respectively, than those of 7-day-old control sprouts. No detectable effects were observed on the contents of 4-methoxy-glucobrassicin and vitamin C. In addition, the accumulation of anthocyanins in 7-day-old sprouts decreased by 14.8–39.3% upon sulfur fertilization. These findings indicated that the application of sulfur fertilization has the potential to enhance the levels of health-promoting compounds in radish sprouts.