Probing in vitro digestion at oil–water interfaces

Interfacial layers have been widely applied to study the formation and stability of emulsion-based systems. However, the application of isolated interfaces to address digestibility of emulsions is often limited because of the complexity of experimental methods and results. This review summarizes the latest developments in analytical methods and literature data on effects of digestion on interfacial layers. Particular emphasis is given to understand the changes on interfacial magnitudes during oral, gastric, and duodenal digestion, either applied separately or sequentially. Limitations of interfacial aspects and key factors that influence emulsion microstructure in bulk and lipid digestion are identified. Understanding the behavior of interfacial layers upon gastrointestinal digestion promotes an accurate tracking of the physiological fate of emulsions.     

Fermentation characteristics and the dynamic trend of chemical components during fermentation of Massa Medicata Fermentata

As a representative of traditionally fermented Chinese medicine, Massa Medicata Fermentata (MMF) shows the functions of invigorating the spleen and stomach and promoting digestion, which plays an important role in the treatment of gastrointestinal diseases. The fermentation mechanism and the key factors that affect the quality of MMF have not been revealed yet, which has become an urgent issue that limits its clinical application. This article aims to systematically and comprehensively reveal the transformation of physical properties and the dynamic trend of chemical components including substrate components, volatile components, and lactic acid as anaerobic fermentation product during MMF fermentation. Along with obvious hyphae growth observed for MMF, the weight of MMF decreased, and the moisture and temperature increased. Through the quantified 14 components from substrate, ferulic acid increased from 45.53 ± 6.94 to 141.89 ± 78.40 μg/g, while glycosides and phenolic acids declined except caffeic acid. Also, within the 66 volatile components analyzed, alcohols and acids increased, while aldehydes and ketones decreased. Lactic acid was not detected in the fermentation substrate, but an apparent increase in lactic acid content was observed along with the increased fermentation days, resulting in 2.54 ± 0.15 mg/g on day 8. Based on the tested components, the fermentation process of MMF was discriminated into three distinct stages by principal component analysis, and an optimal fermentation time of four days was proposed. The results of this study will be of great significance to clarify the characteristics of fermentation and conduce to improving quality standards of MMF.     

Qualitative properties of pulsating fronts for reaction–advection–diffusion equations in periodic excitable media

In this paper, we study the pulsating fronts of reaction–advection-diffusion equations with two types of nonlinear term in periodic excitable media. Firstly, for the case with combustion nonlinearity, the unique front is proved to decay exponentially when it approaches the unstable limiting state. Secondly, for the degenerate monostable type nonlinearity, it is shown that the front with critical speed is unique, monotone and decays exponentially at negative end, while the fronts of noncritical speeds decay to zero non-exponentially.     

Asymptotic stability of the Degasperis–Procesi antipeakon–peakon profile

The aim of this paper is to prove that the Degasperis–Procesi antipeakon–peakon profile is asymptotically stable for all time. We start by proving the asymptotic stability of a single Degasperis–Procesi peakon and antipeakon with respect to perturbations having a momentum density that is first negative and then positive. Then this result is extended towards a well-ordered trains of antipeakons–peakons under such perturbations. In particular, the asymptotic stability of the antipeakon–peakon profile holds.     

Minimax principles for elliptic mixed hemivariational–variational inequalities

In this paper, minimax principles are explored for elliptic mixed hemivariational–variational inequalities. Under certain conditions, a saddle-point formulation is shown to be equivalent to a mixed hemivariational–variational inequality. While the minimax principle is of independent interest, it is employed in this paper to provide an elementary proof of the solution existence of the mixed hemivariational–variational inequality. Theoretical results are illustrated in the applications of two contact problems.     

Synthetic strategies and functional reactivity of versatile thiophene synthons

Abstract

Thiophenes are a highly important group of heterocycles and have been of great interest to researchers due to their various reactivities. Many synthetic strategies are used to generate functionalized thiophene derivatives. Several reactions are described, depending on the reactivity of the substituents attached to the thiophene nucleus toward different nucleophiles to yield the versatile thiophene products. Many diverse applications have been utilized for thiophenes from medicinal chemistry to material science.     

Intrinsic infrared absorption for carbon–fluorine bonding in fluorinated nanodiamond

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Astragalus membranaceus ultrafine powder alleviates hyperuricemia by regulating the gut microbiome and reversing bile acid and adrenal hormone biosynthesis dysregulation

Ethnopharmacological relevanceMetabolic syndrome is closely related to the intestinal microbiota and disturbances in the host metabolome. Hyperuricemia (HUA), a manifestation of metabolic syndrome, can induce various cardiovascular diseases and gout, seriously affecting a patient’s quality of life. Astragalus membranaceus has a long history as a commonly used traditional Chinese medicine to treat kidney disease in China and East Asia.Materials and methodsWe compared the therapeutic effect of benzbromarone and two different doses Astragalus membranaceus ultrafine powder (AMUP) in rats with HUA. Ultra-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometer was used to analyze the AMUP metabolism in the plasma, urine, and feces. Further, 16S ribosome RNA sequencing and feces metabolomic were performed to capture the variation of the gut microbiota and metabolites changes before and after drug administration.ResultsAMUP had a notable impact on reducing blood uric acid levels while protecting the liver and kidney. Drug metabolism analysis demonstrated that effective constituent flavonoids are distributed in the blood, whereas saponins remain in the intestine. Gut microbiota analysis showed that low-dose AMUP ameliorated HUA-induced gut dysbiosis by reducing the abundance of harmful bacteria and increasing that of some beneficial bacteria with anti-inflammatory properties, such as Clostridia, Lachnospiraceae, and Muribaculaceae. In addition, HUA-induced changes in metabolite contents in bile acid and adrenal hormone biosynthesis pathways were restored after treatment with AMUP.ConclusionLow-dose AMUP exerts remarkable therapeutic effects on HUA by regulating the gut microbiome and mediating gut metabolism pathways associated with uric acid excretion.     

Dimethyl carbonate as a novel methylating reagent for fatty acids in analytical pyrolysis

Dimethyl carbonate (DMC) was investigated as a mild, harmless and odorless reagent for pyrolytic methylation of fatty acids. Soybean oil was selected as test material for its high content of (poly)unsaturated fatty acids. Pyrolyses were performed at 500, 700 and 900 degrees C by means of a heated platinum filament pyrolyser on-line and off-line to the GC-MS apparatus. Methyl esters of palmitic, linoleic, oleic and stearic acid were formed as prominent products from off-line pyrolysis of soybean oil in the presence of DMC and zeolite 13X. Fatty acid methyl esters (FAMEs) were not observed at important levels in the absence of zeolite, while on-line Py-GC-MS experiments resulted principally in the formation of free fatty acids and hydrocarbons. The FAME profiles obtained from the DMC/zeolite off-line pyrolysis were compared to those resulting from tetramethylammonium hydroxide (TMAH) thermochemolysis and BF3-methanol procedure. The observed differences between pyrolysis and methanolysis methods were principally attributed to the thermal degradation of unsaturated fatty acids. The effectiveness of the DMC/zeolite pyrolytic methylation was further demonstrated by the analysis of tripalmitine and soybean seeds.