Association of sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitors with the incidence of corneal diseases in type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors revealed the protective function on various systemic diseases. This study aimed to determine whether the usage of SGLT2 inhibitors associates with incidences of superficial keratopathy and infectious keratitis in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients. A retrospective cohort study with the usage of National Health Insurance Research Database of Taiwan was conducted. The T2DM patients were divided into the SGLT2 inhibitors and control groups according to the usage of SGLT2 inhibitors or not. The major outcomes were defined as the occurrence of superficial keratopathy and infectious keratitis. There were 766 and 1037 episodes of superficial keratopathy in the SGLT2 inhibitors and control groups and SGLT2 inhibitors group showed a significantly lower incidence of superficial keratopathy than the control group (aHR: 0.721, 95% CI: 0.656-0.791, P < 0.0001). Also, there were 166 and 251 infectious keratitis events in the SGLT2 inhibitors and control groups and patients in the SGLT2 inhibitors group revealed a significantly lower infectious keratitis incidence than those in the control group (aHR: 0.654, 95% CI: 0.537-0.796, P < 0.0001). In addition, the patients that received SGLT2 inhibitors demonstrated lower cumulative incidences of both superficial keratopathy and infectious keratitis compared to the non-SGLT2 inhibitors users (both P < 0.0001). In conclusion, the usage of SGLT2 inhibitors correlates to lower incidence of superficial keratopathy and infectious keratitis in T2DM individuals, which is more significant in patients with persistent SGLT2 inhibitors application.

In situ formation of nanocomposite double-network hydrogels with shear-thinning and self-healing properties.

Nanocomposite double-network hydrogels (ncDN hydrogels) are recently introduced to address the limitations of traditional DN hydrogels, such as the lack of diversity in the network structure and the restricted functionalities. However, two challenges remain, including the time-consuming preparation and the lack of shear-thinning and self-healing properties. Here, our approach to developing versatile ncDN hydrogels is through the use of multiple interfacial crosslinking chemistries (i.e., noncovalent interactions of electrostatic interaction and hydrogen bonds as well as dynamic covalent interactions of imine bonds and boronate ester bonds) and surface functionalized nanomaterials (i.e. phenylboronic acid modified reduced graphene oxide (PBA-rGO)). PBA-rGO was used as a multivalent gelator to further crosslink the two polymer chains (i.e. triethylene glycol-grafted chitosan (TEG-CS) and polydextran aldehyde (PDA)) in DN hydrogels, forming the TEG-CS/PDA/PBA-rGO ncDN hydrogels in seconds. The microstructures (i.e. pore size) and properties (i.e. rheological, mechanical, and swelling properties) of the ncDN hydrogels can be simply modulated by changing the amount of PBA-rGO. The dynamic bonds in the polymeric network provided the shear-thinning and self-healing properties to the ncDN hydrogels, allowing the hydrogels to be injected and molded into varied shapes as well as self-repair the damaged structure. Besides, the designed TEG-CS/PDA/PBA-rGO ncDN hydrogels were cytocompatible and also exhibited antibacterial activity. Taken together, we hereby provide a nanomaterial approach to fabricate a new class of ncDN hydrogels with tailorable networks and favorite properties for specific applications.

Encapsulation of ß-Glucosidase within PVA Fibers by CCD-RSM-Guided Coelectrospinning: A Novel Approach for Specific Mogroside Sweetener Production.

Siamenoside I is a rare mogroside in Siraitia grosvenorii Swingle and has become one of the target ingredients in natural sweetener production. However, the complex structure of siamenoside I has hindered its production in various ways. Here, a yeast cell that produces a specific ß-glucosidase for siamenoside I conversion from mogroside V was constructed, and the enzymes were coelectrospun with poly(vinyl alcohol) followed by phenylboronic acid cross-linking to provide potential usage in the batch production process of Siamenoside I. A central composite design (CCD)-response surface methodology (RSM) was used to find the optimum coelectrospinning parameters. The pH stability and sodium dodecyl sulfate tolerance increased for the entrapped enzymes, and positive correlations between the fiber diameter and enzymatic activity were confirmed. The batch process showed an average siamenoside I production rate of 118 ± 0.08 mg L-1 h-1 per gram of fiber. This is the first research article showing specific siamenoside I production on enzyme-loaded electrospun fibers.