Effect of quercetin on nonshivering thermogenesis of brown adipose tissue in high-fat diet-induced obese mice.

Activating nonshivering thermogenesis in brown adipose tissue (BAT) is a promising strategy to prevent obesity. This study investigated whether quercetin supplementation improves obesity in mice by increasing nonshivering thermogenesis in BAT and white adipose tissue (WAT) browning. Compared to high-fat diet (HFD)-fed mice, mice fed a HFD supplemented with 1% quercetin (HFDQ) had reduced body weight and total plasma cholesterol. In HFDQ-fed mice, retroperitoneal WAT (RWAT) weight was decreased, and browning effect and lipolysis were increased. HFDQ-fed mice had increased expression of nonshivering thermogenesis genes in BAT, including uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1), peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma coactivator 1α (PGC1α), cell death-inducing DFFA-like effector A (CIDEA), and mitochondrial transcriptional factor A (mtTFA). Quercetin supplementation increased genes and proteins in ß3-adrenergic receptor (ADRB3), p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK), and AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) pathways in HFD-fed mice, which were suppressed by an AMPK inhibitor or an ADRB3 antagonist. Energy expenditure and core body temperature were not changed by quercetin, but physical activity was increased in HFDQ mice during dark periods at room and cold temperatures. Quercetin also decreased the Firmicutes to Bacteroidetes ratio and increased short-chain fatty acid production in the feces of HFD-fed mice. In summary, quercetin supplementation in HFD-fed mice may attenuate obesity. Although the study did not show consistency in data at molecular and pathophysiological levels between BAT function and obesity, it also shows promising health effects of quercetin, accompanied by improved physical activity and gut microbiota dysbiosis.

Rumen-protected methionine supplementation during the peripartal period alters the expression of galectin genes associated with inflammation in peripheral neutrophils and secretion in plasma of Holstein cows.

The work described in this research communication aimed to investigate whether rumen-protected methionine (Met) supplementation during the periparturient period would affect the expression of galectins in blood-derived neutrophils, and secretion of galectins, IL (interleukin)-1ß, IL-6, myeloperoxidase (MPO), and glucose in plasma. Because supplementation of rumen-protected Met would alleviate inflammation and oxidative stress during the peripartal period, we hypothesized that enhancing Met supply would benefit the innate immune response at least in part by altering the expression of galectin genes associated with neutrophil activity and inflammation. Galectins (Gal) have an immuno-modulating effect acting like cell-surface receptors whose activation often results in signaling cascades stimulating cells such as neutrophils. This study revealed an association between Met supplementation and galectin expression and secretion. This implies that galectin expression and secretion can be modulated by Met supplementation. Further studies are needed to evaluate the regulation of galectin gene expression for therapeutic and dietary intervention in the peripartal cow.

Uses of miscanthus press juice within a green biorefinery platform.

This study assesses some uses of nutrient-rich juice mechanically extracted from freshly harvested Miscanthus x giganteus (MxG) as part of a green biorefinery system. The juice was used for culturing Saccharomyces cerevisiae and lactic acid bacteria. MxG juice was further used as substrate for fermentation to produce lactic acid using Lactobacillus brevis and Lactobacillus plantarum. The results show that MxG juice was a highly nutritious source for the cultivation of bacteria. Higher concentrations of MxG juice used as culture media, resulted in higher cell growth both aerobically and anaerobically. The highest ethanol yield of 70% theoretical and concentration of 0.75g/100ml were obtained from S. cerevisiae cultivated with 90% (v/v) MxG juice media and used for miscanthus solid fraction fermentation. 11.91g/L of lactic acid was also successfully produced from MxG juice through SSF.

Effects of fertilizer application and dry/wet processing of Miscanthus x giganteus on bioethanol production.

The effects of wet and dry processing of miscanthus on bioethanol production using simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) process were investigated, with wet samples showing higher ethanol yields than dry samples. Miscanthus grown with no fertilizer, with fertilizer and with swine manure were sampled for analysis. Wet-fractionation was used to separate miscanthus into solid and liquid fractions. Dilute sulfuric acid pretreatment was employed and the SSF process was performed with saccharomyces cerevisiae and a cocktail of enzymes at 35°C. After pretreatment, cellulose compositions of biomass of the wet samples increased from 61.0-67.0% to 77.0-87.0%, which were higher than the compositions of dry samples. The highest theoretical ethanol yield of 88.0% was realized for wet processed pretreated miscanthus, grown with swine manure. Changes to the morphology and chemical composition of the biomass samples after pretreatment, such as crystallinity reduction, were observed using SEM and FTIR. These changes improved ethanol production.

Optimization of cultural conditions for conversion of glycerol to ethanol by Enterobacter aerogenes S012.

The aim of this research is to optimize the cultural conditions for the conversion of glycerol to ethanol by Enterobacter aerogenes S012. Taguchi method was used to screen the cultural conditions based on their signal to noise ratio (SN). Temperature (°C), agitation speed (rpm) and time (h) were found to have the highest influence on both glycerol utilization and ethanol production by the organism while pH had the lowest. Full factorial design, statistical analysis, and regression model equation were used to optimize the selected cultural parameters for maximum ethanol production. The result showed that fermentation at 38°C and 200 rpm for 48 h would be ideal for the bacteria to produce maximum amount of ethanol from glycerol. At these optimum conditions, ethanol production, yield and productivity were 25.4 g/l, 0.53 g/l/h, and 1.12 mol/mol-glycerol, repectively. Ethanol production increased to 26.5 g/l while yield and productivity decreased to 1.04 mol/mol-glycerol and 0.37 g/l/h, respectively, after 72 h. Analysis of the fermentation products was performed using HPLC, while anaerobic condition was created by purging the fermentation vessel with nitrogen gas.