PMAT variant rs3889348 is associated with metformin-induced gastrointestinal among Chinese Type 2 diabetes patients.

Aim: This study examined intronic gene variants for their association with metformin intolerance in a Chinese population, focusing on the plasma monoamine transporter (PMAT) cis-protein expression quantitative trait loci (cis-eQTL) variant rs3889348. Methods: We recruited Type 2 diabetes patients from two hospitals and identified 111 metformin-intolerant patients using a questionnaire, and selected 206 metformin-tolerant patients from 2180 Type 2 diabetes mellitus patients. Genetic testing revealed an association between adverse gastrointestinal (GI) effects and SLC22A1 and PMAT. Results: The single-nucleotide polymorphism rs3889348 is associated with metformin-induced adverse GI effects. Each additional copy of the G allele increases the score by 5.23 (95% CI: 1.82-8.64; p = 0.003). Patients taking more transporter inhibitors were more likely to respond to metformin-induced GI intolerance (p = 0.042). Conclusion: PMAT cis-eQTL rs3889348 was significantly associated with metformin-induced adverse GI effects.

Altered Fecal Microbiota Correlated With Systemic Inflammation in Male Subjects With Methamphetamine Use Disorder.

Methamphetamine use disorder (MUD) is a major public health problem worldwide with limited effective treatment options. Previous studies have reported methamphetamine-associated alterations in gut microbiota. A potential role of gut microbiota in regulating methamphetamine-induced brain dysfunction through interactions with the host immune system has been proposed, but evidence for this hypothesis is limited. The present study aimed to investigate the alterations in the fecal microbiota and explore its relationship with systemic inflammation in MUD. Fecal samples were obtained from 26 male subjects with MUD and 17 sex- and age- matched healthy controls. Fecal microbial profiles were analyzed by 16S rRNA sequencing. Plasma inflammatory markers were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Associations between fecal microbiota, systemic inflammatory markers and clinical characteristics were examined by Spearman partial correlation analysis while controlling for possible confounders. Compared with healthy controls, individuals with MUD showed no difference in fecal microbial diversity, but exhibited differences in the relative abundance of several microbial taxa. At the genus level, a higher abundance of Collinsella, Odoribacter and Megasphaera and lower levels of Faecalibacterium, Blautia, Dorea and Streptococcus were detected in subjects with MUD. More importantly, altered fecal microbiota was found to be correlated with plasma levels of CRP, IL-2, IL-6 and IL-10. The order Lactobacillales, exhibiting lower abundance in participants with MUD, was positively related to the duration of methamphetamine abstinence and the plasma level of anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10. This study is the first to provide evidence for a link between altered fecal microbiota and systemic inflammation in MUD. Further elucidation of interactions between gut microbiota and the host immune system may be beneficial for the development of novel therapeutic approaches for MUD.

Controlled Synthesis, Mechanism and Degradation Property of Birnessite-MnO2 Nanoflowers and Nanoflakes.

Birnessite-MnO2 nanoflakes were synthesized via an aqueous oxidation method at 90 °C using Mn(CH3COO)2, NaOH, and KMnO4. The samples' morphology, crystalline structure, and optical property were determined by field emission scanning electron microscopy, X-ray powder diffraction and UV-Vis spectrophotometry. The birnessite-MnO2 nanoflakes were converted to KxMn8O16 and Mn suboxides following a decrease in the concentration of KMnO4 in the reaction. The amount of NaOH in the reaction determined the type of precursor. Without NaOH, the precursor was converted from Mn(OH)2 to Mn2+ (from Mn(CH3COO)2), thereby enabling the synthesis of birnessite-MnO2 nanoflowers. The formation mechanism of birnessite-MnO2 nanoflowers and nanoflakes was clarified via the corresponding simulated crystal structures. Evaluation of the synthesized samples confirmed that the birnessite-MnO2 nanoflakes and nanoflowers exhibited excellent degradation properties.

Synthesis of Co3O4 nanoclusters via an EDTANa4-assisted route for enhanced electrochemical application.

Three-dimensional (3D) Co3O4 nanoclusters were fabricated with the assistance of tetrasodium ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid (EDTANa4) through a one-pot wet-chemical reaction, featuring self-limiting assembly of building blocks and controlled regrowth process. The molar ratio of Co2+ and EDTANa4 plays a key role in building initial clusters as blocks, and the amount of NaOH effects the regrowth process. A possible formation mechanism for the Co3O4 nanoclusters was proposed based on the characterization results of X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The designed hierarchical Co3O4 nanoclusters exhibit a high specific capacitance of 221Fg-1 at a current density of 2Ag-1 in 2molL-1 KOH electrolyte.

Hierarchical Bi based nanobundles: an excellent photocatalyst for visible-light degradation of Rhodamine B dye.

Hierarchical Bi based nanobundles were self-assembled via an aqueous reduction approach using hydrazine hydrate as reductive agent, and were used as photocatalysts for the degradation of Rhodamine B (RhB) under visible light. PVP molecules were designed as inducing agent to construct the Bi based nanobundles. The as-obtained samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), energy dispersive X-ray (EDX), thermogravimetric-differential thermal analyzer (TG-DTA), infrared spectroscopy (IR) and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) to get clear information of the crystals. A possible formation mechanism for the interesting architectures was proposed in the paper. The Bi based nanobundles exhibited excellent photocatalytic activity and good cycling performance towards photodegradation of RhB under visible light. The pH-sensitive degradation can reach 96% in degradation rate after 90 min, which indicates potential applications of the Bi based nanobundles on the degradation of organic pollutants. Degradation mechanism is proposed on the combination of Bi and BiOCl crystals.

Superlocalization spectral imaging microscopy of a multicolor quantum dot complex.

The key factor of realizing super-resolution optical microscopy at the single-molecule level is to separately position two adjacent molecules. An opportunity to independently localize target molecules is provided by the intermittency (blinking) in fluorescence of a quantum dot (QD) under the condition that the blinking of each emitter can be recorded and identified. Herein we develop a spectral imaging based color nanoscopy which is capable of determining which QD is blinking in the multicolor QD complex through tracking the first-order spectrum, and thus, the distance at tens of nanometers between two QDs is measured. Three complementary oligonucleotides with lengths of 15, 30, and 45 bp are constructed as calibration rulers. QD585 and QD655 are each linked at one end. The measured average distances are in good agreement with the calculated lengths with a precision of 6 nm, and the intracellular dual-color QDs within a diffraction-limited spot are distinguished.