Effects of DPP-4 inhibitor combined with metformin on blood glucose control, oxidative stress and inflammatory response in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus

Objective: To investigate the effects of DPP-4 inhibitor combined with metformin on blood glucose control, oxidative stress and inflammatory response in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Methods: A total of 138 patients with newly diagnosed T2DM who were treated in the hospital between March 2016 and April 2017 were divided into routine group (n=69) and combined treatment group (n=69) by random number table method. Routine group were treated with metformin alone and combined treatment group received DPP-4 inhibitor combined with metformin therapy. The differences in blood glucose control as well as oxidative stress-related indicator and inflammatory factor contents were compared between the two groups before and after treatment. Results: Before treatment, the differences in blood glucose index levels in peripheral blood as well as the oxidative stress index and inflammatory mediator contents in serum were not statistically significant between the two groups. After 4 weeks of treatment, blood glucose indexes FBG and HOMA-IR levels in peripheral blood of combined treatment group were lower than those of routine group;oxidative stress indexes MDA and LHP contents in serum were lower than those of routine group whereas GSH-Px and T-AOC contents were higher than those of routine group;inflammatory mediators hs-CRP, IL-1 and IL-6 contents in serum were lower than those of routine group. Conclusion: DPP-4 inhibitor combined with metformin therapy can effectively control the blood glucose and suppress the systemic oxidative stress and inflammatory response in T2DM paients.

Phosphate limitation increases coenzyme Q10 production in industrial Rhodobacter sphaeroides HY01

Coenzyme Q10(CoQ10)is an important component of the respiratory chain in humans and some bacteria.As a high-value-added nutraceutical antioxidant,CoQ10 has excellent capacity to prevent cardiovascular disease.The content of CoQ10 in the industrial Rhodobacter sphaeroides HY01 is hundreds of folds higher than normal physiological levels.In this study,we found that overexpression or optimization of the synthetic pathway failed CoQ10 overproduction in the HY01 strain.Moreover,under phosphate-limited conditions(decreased phosphate or in the absence of inorganic phosphate addition),CoQ10 production increased significantly by 12%to220 mg/L,biomass decreased by 12%,and the CoQ10 productivity of unit cells increased by 27%.In subsequent fed-batch fermentation,CoQ10 production reached 272 mg/L in the shake-flask fermentation and 1.95 g/L in a 100-L bioreactor under phosphate limitation.Furthermore,to understand the mechanism associated with CoQ10 overproduction under phosphate-limited conditions,the comparatve transcriptome analysis was performed.These results indicated that phosphate limitation combined with glucose fed-batch fermentation represented an effective strategy for CoQ10 production in the HY01.Phosphate limitation induced a pleiotropic effect on cell metabolism,and that improved CoQ10 biosynthesis efficiency was possibly related to the disturbance of energy metabolism and redox potential.

SnS2/graphene nanocomposite：A high rate anode material for lithium ion battery

In this work,via a facile solvothermal route,we synthesized an anode material for lithium ion batteries（LIBs）—SnS2 nanoparticle/graphene（SnS2 NP/GNs） nanocomposite.The nanocomposite consists of SnS2nanoparticles with an average diameter of 4 nm and graphene nanosheets without restacking.The SnS2 nanoparticles are firmly anchored on the graphene nanosheets.As an anode material for LIBs,the nanocomposite exhibits good Li storage performance especially high rate performance.At the high current rate of 5,10,and 20 A/g,the nanocomposite delivered high capacities of 525,443,and 378 mAh/g,respectively.The good conductivity of the graphene nanosheets and the small particle size of SnS2contribute to the electrochemical performance of SnS2 NP/GNs.