In the past decade, the high morbidity and mortality of atherosclerotic disease have been prevalent worldwide. High-fat food consumption has been suggested to be an overarching factor for atherosclerosis incidence. This study aims to investigate the effects of kefir peptides on high-fat diet (HFD)-induced atherosclerosis in apolipoprotein E knockout (ApoE −/−) mice. 7-week old male ApoE −/− and normal C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into five groups (n = 8). Atherosclerotic lesion development in ApoE −/− mice was established after fed the HFD for 12 weeks compared to standard chow diet (SCD)-fed C57BL/6 and ApoE −/− control groups. Kefir peptides oral administration significantly improved atherosclerotic lesion development by protecting against endothelial dysfunction, decreasing oxidative stress, reducing aortic lipid deposition, attenuating macrophage accumulation, and suppressing the inflammatory immune response compared with the HFD/ApoE −/− mock group. Moreover, the high dose of kefir peptides substantially inhibited aortic fibrosis and restored the fibrosis in the aorta root close to that observed in the C57BL/6 normal control group. Our findings show, for the first time, anti-atherosclerotic progression via kefir peptides consumption in HFDfed ApoE −/− mice. The profitable effects of kefir peptides provide new perspectives for its use as an antiatherosclerotic agent in the preventive medicine. The World Health Organization (WHO) suggests that cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the primary cause of mortality, and considerably more individuals die annually from CVDs than from any other cause globally. Atherosclerosis is known as the major cause of CVDs. The pivotal initiators involved in atherosclerosis development are enhanced levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol in the circulation, vascular reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, and inflammation 1. It has been suggested that inflammation plays a fundamental role in CVDs and atherosclerotic lesion progression 2. In early atherosclerotic lesions, the accumulation of foam cells leads to fatty streak formation. Immune cells and vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) accumulate in the subendothelial layer of the artery wall 3,4. Various inflammatory cells, including neutrophils, macrophages, and lymphocytes, are involved in atherosclerosis progression; however, macrophages were reported as the first inflammatory cell associated with atherosclerosis and predominantly present within atherosclerotic vessels 5-7 .
The CuICuICuI tricopper cluster complex is the only known catalyst capable of efficient methane oxidation near room temperature similar to the particulate methane monooxygenase (pMMO). Here, we compare the turnover of the CuICuICuI tricopper catalyst with the biochemistry of the functional pMMO. Insights into the turnover of the biomimetic tricopper catalyst are derived from anaerobic electrospray mass spectrometry (ESI‐MS) and high‐resolution ESI‐MS (HR‐ESI‐MS). We follow activation of the tricopper cluster with O2/H2O2 by rapid‐freeze‐quench ESI‐MS, high‐resolution cold‐spray ionization mass spectrometry (HR‐CSI‐MS) and electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy, capturing all the species participating in the activation and deactivation pathways of the turnover cycle. The reactivity of the activated tricopper complex toward alkane oxidation is essentially the same as the biochemistry reported earlier for pMMO from Methylococcus capsulatus (Bath).
important sustainable issue of human society. Among a variety of renewable energies such as wind, biomass, hydroelectric power, and geothermal power, solar energy is the most abundant candidate that provides 1.7 × 10 5 TW of energy striking the surface of the Earth annually. [1] To date, crystalline silicon solar cell is the most mature photovoltaic (PV) technology with power conversion efficiency (PCE, η) over 25%. However, the long energy payback time, energy-intense manufacturing process, and recycling problem of siliconbased solar cells remain critical issues for sustainability. [2] In 1991, Grätzel reported a new type of PV techniques, dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs), which have several advantages such as low-cost fabrication, colorfulness, flexibility, and high efficiency under dim light than silicon-based solar cells. [1a,3] These features make DSSCs a promising technology for applications in building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) and portable electronic devices. [4] To improve the PCE and stability of DSSCs for commercialization, considerable efforts have been devoted to the research of conductive electrode materials, [5] semiconductor nanoparticles, [6] dyes, [7] electrolytes, [8] and catalytic counter electrode. [9] In addition, the redox shuttle of electrolytes strongly influences the photovoltage of the DSSC. The theoretical maximum open circuit photovoltage (V OC ) can be as high as 1.37 V for DSSCs using [Cu(tmby) 2 ] 1+/2+ as the electrolyte. [10] These approaches have shown that the dye plays an important role in DSSCs by governing incident light harvesting and electron injection to photoanode. Compared to other types of dyes such as ruthenium complexes, nature pigments, and organic dyes, [7a,11] porphyrins have several advantages including intense absorption in the visible region, consisting of abundant elements, good thermal stability, and tunable electrochemical properties. [12] Benchmark PCEs of DSSCs have been achieved by the employment of porphyrin dyes such as GY50 (η = 12.8%), [13] SM315 (η = 13%), [14] SGT-021 (η = 12.1%), [15] and SGT-137/ SGT-021 tandem cell (η = 14.6%), in combination with cobalt electrolytes. [16] The superior performances of these dyes can be attributed to their particular donor-π-acceptor (D-π-A) structures for enhancing electron injection, compatibility with Porphyrins are an important category of dyes for efficient dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). However, the efficiency improvement of DSSCs lags behind those of organic and perovskite solar cells owing to deficiencies in new design strategies of dye molecular structures. Recently, double fence porphyrins with superior photovoltaic performance were reported, in which eight alkoxyl chains were introduced to wrap the porphyrin core and retard the approach of the electrolyte to the surface of TiO 2 . On the basis of the design strategy of double fence porphyrins, novel porphyrins bJS8, YS2, YS3, YS7, and MC1 featuring dual functional indacenodithiophene group are synthesized and their photovoltaic p...
Saddle-shaped Co(II)[OET(p-R)PP] (R = CF3, H, CH3) can be readily oxidized with Cl2, Br2, and I2 to the corresponding one-electron-oxidation product Co[OET(p-R)PP]X (X = Cl, Br, I) with the clear character of a ring cation radical. With the series of (1)H and (13)C NMR spectra of these related complexes, both the axial ligand and peripheral substituent of the ring macrocycle are proven to act as a dual channel to tune spin coupling between low-spin Co(II) and a porphyrin π-cation radical. Density functional theory calculations have shown that the antiferromagnetic coupling between spins residing in d(z)(2) and a(2u) are expected to exist as the ground state. The paramagnetic properties are attributed to an a(1u)-type ferromagnetic excited triplet state.
Introduction Kefir is an acidic and alcoholic fermented milk product with multiple health‐promoting benefits. A previous study demonstrated that kefir enhanced calcium absorption in intestinal Caco‐2 cells. In this study, kefir‐fermented peptide‐1 (KFP‐1) is isolated from the kefir peptide fraction, and its function as a calcium‐binding peptide is characterized. Methods and Results KFP‐1 was identified as a 17‐residue peptide with a sequence identical to that of κ‐casein (residues 138–154) in milk protein. KFP‐1 is demonstrated to promote calcium influx in Caco‐2 and IEC‐6 small intestinal cells in a concentration‐dependent manner. TRPV6, but not L‐type voltage‐gated calcium channels, is associated with the calcium influx induced by KFP‐1. An in vitro calcium binding assay indicates that the full‐length KFP‐1 peptide has a higher calcium‐binding capacity than the two truncated KFP‐1 peptides, KFP‐1∆C5 and KFP‐1C5. Alexa Fluor 594 labeling shows that KFP‐1 is taken up by Caco‐2 cells and interacts with calcium ions and TRPV6 protein. Moreover, KFP‐1 is found moderately resistant to pepsin and pancreatin digestions and enhanced calcium uptake by intestinal enterocytes in vivo. Conclusion These data suggest that KFP‐1, a novel calcium‐binding peptide, binds extracellular calcium ions and enters Caco‐2 and IEC‐6 cells, and promotes calcium uptake through TRPV6 calcium channels. The present study is of great importance for developing kefir‐derived metal ion‐binding peptides as functional nutraceutical additives.
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