LEAP2 ameliorates high fat diet-impaired glucose tolerance and enhances glucose-stimulated insulin secretion from β cells through PPARγ signal pathway

To the Editor:Type 2 diabetes(T2D)is an endocrine system disease,characterized by persistent hyperglycemia,and is one of the most common and fastest growing diseases in the world.[1]Although significant progresses have been made in understanding the pathology of T2D with abnormal insulin-secretion profiles,the molecular and cellular mechanisms ofβcells remain largely uncertain.Moreover,the liver-expressed antimicrobial peptide 2(LEAP2)may antagonize the inhibition effect of ghrelin on insulin secretion by inhibiting the ghrelin receptor(growth hormone secretagogue receptor,GHSR).The regulation of glucose homeostasis by the ghrelin-LEAP2-GHSR axis remains largely unknown.It is hypothesized that the ghrelin-LEAP2-GHSR axis may regulate the insulin-glucose homeostasis in diabetic condition.

Phosphatidylserine:An overview on functionality,processing techniques,patents,and prospects

Phosphatidylserine(PS)is the part of cell structure in the body and has many beneficial functions especially in brain-related aging diseases.Although daily foods can provide PS to human body,the amount is very limited due to its poverty in most foods.To overcome the issue,numerous studies based on PS have been reported to develop PS-related supplements.In this review,PS was comprehensively and critically reviewed from the view of resources,functions,processing techniques,patents,and prospects.For resources,animal,plant,and microorganism origins were all covered with their differences in composition profiles.For functions,benefits regarding memory,cognitive enhancement,exercise performance,reducing Alzheimer’s disease,and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder symptoms were covered as well as the functional differences among animal-,plant-,and microorganism-based PS-related supplements.For processing techniques,traditional extracting methods from animal,plant,and microorganism tissues were comparatively discussed with enzymatic synthesis based on different reaction systems.Finally,patents of PS-related supplements were evaluated as well as their applications.This review could provide scientific and valuable support for PS industry.

Enzymatic preparation of mono-and diacylglycerols:A review

Monoacylglycerols(MAGs) and diacylglycerols(DAGs) are partial glycerides widely used in food industry. They are safe and non-toxic food emulsifiers, especially for MAGs. MAGs account for approximately 75% of the total emulsifiers in food industry worldwide. DAGs are recognized as functional cooking oils, they can suppress body fat accumulation and postprandial serum triacylglycerols(TAGs) level. The traditional production of MAGs and DAGs is based on the chemical method, which requires high reaction temperature usually up to 200–260 ℃. Such high temperature is not suitable for oil containing heat sensitive polyunsaturated fatty acids. Enzymatic approach has been received increasing attentions. Enzymatic production of partial glycerides to replace chemical processes has been in industry, particularly for DAGs production as the products have been claimed as a functional and nutritional oil. Enzyme technology for the processing of oils and fats has been moved to industry step by step and case by case during the last 20 years. More and more applications are particularly moving into bulky oils and fats processing. At the same time, the cost of enzymes as a commercial product is reducing steadily. This review summarized the recent 15 years advances on the the enzymatic preparation of MAGs and DAGs. The critical process parameters under different reaction routes were presented and emphasized. The reaction media not only increased the homogeneity of the reaction system, but also shifted the reaction equilibrium towards the target product generation, and this part was stated in detail. In addition, the patent evaluation was included, and the application of MAGs and DAGs was covered.

Prospects of key technologies of integrated energy systems for rural electrification in China

Owing to increasing environmental concerns and resource scarcity, integrated energy system shave become widely used in communities. Rural energy systems, as one of the important links of the energy network in China, suffer from low energy efficiency and weak infrastructure. Therefore, it is particularly important to increase the proportion of electricity consumption and build an integrated energy system for rural electrification in China(IESREIC) with a rural distribution network as the core, in line with national conditions. In this study, by analyzing the Chinese regional differences and natural resource endowments, the development characteristics of the IESREIC are summarized. Then, according to the existing rural energy problems, key technologies are proposed for the IESREIC, such as those for planning and operation, value sharing, infrastructure, and a management and control platform. Finally, IESREIC demonstration projects and business models are introduced for agricultural production, rural industrial systems, and rural life. The purpose is to propose research concepts for the IESREIC, provide suggestions for the development of rural energy, and provide a reference for the construction of rural energy systems in countries with characteristics similar to those of China.

Noncovalent immobilization of manganese peroxidases from P.chrysosporium on carbon nanotubes

Manganese peroxidases(MnP)from Phanerochaete chrysosporium were adsorbed onto multi-walled carbon nanotubes(MWNT).Four different loadings of MnP on MWNTs were investigated,and the maximum enzyme loading of 47.5µg/mg of MWNTs was obtained in 12 h.The adsorbed MnP showed a catalytic activity of up to 0.1 U/mg of the weight of the system of MnP/MWNTs,with 23%of its original activity retained.The AFM image of the adsorbed enzymes indicated that a layer of MnP covered the surface of the MWNTs and retained its original three-dimensional shape.Amino-based nonspecific interactions may play the dominant role in the adsorption of MnP on MWNTs.

Assembly of Preformed Gold Nanoparticles onto Thermore- sponsive Poly（N-isopropylacrylamide）-Based Microgels on the Basis of Au-thiol Chemistry

The assembly of preformed gold nanoparticles （AuNPs） onto the thermoresponsive poly（N-isopropylacrylamide） （PNIPAM）-based microgels was achieved on the basis of the driving force of Au-thiol chemistry. The loading amount of AuNPs can be controlled by varying the ratio of AuNPs relative to PNIPAM-based microgels. The as-prepared PNIPAM/Au hybrid microgels showed well-defined reversible swelling/deswelling transition in re- sponse to temperature, which can be employed to tune the plasmonic property of hybrid microgels. As the tempera- ture was increased, the position of localized surface plasmon resonance （LSPR） band red-shifted to some extent mainly due to the increase in the local refractive index around AuNPs.