Bioethanol from Lignocellulosic Biomass: Current Findings Determine Research Priorities

“Second generation” bioethanol, with lignocellulose material as feedstock, is a promising alternative for first generation bioethanol. This paper provides an overview of the current status and reveals the bottlenecks that hamper its implementation. The current literature specifies a conversion of biomass to bioethanol of 30 to ~50% only. Novel processes increase the conversion yield to about 92% of the theoretical yield. New combined processes reduce both the number of operational steps and the production of inhibitors. Recent advances in genetically engineered microorganisms are promising for higher alcohol tolerance and conversion efficiency. By combining advanced systems and by intensive additional research to eliminate current bottlenecks, second generation bioethanol could surpass the traditional first generation processes

Impact of exercise training on gut microbiome imbalance in obese individuals: a study based on Mendelian randomization analysis

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between exercise and gut Microbiome and to assess its possible causality.Methods: Using Mendelian randomization (MR) research methods, we collected genetic data from different populations, including genetic variants associated with relative abundance or presence of microbial taxa as instrumental variables. At the same time, we extracted results related to obesity and gut Microbiome from existing relevant studies and used inverse variance weighting (IVW), weighted median, and MR-Egger regression to assess the causal relationship between obesity and gut Microbiome. We plotted forest plots and scatter plots of the association between obesity and gut Microbiome.Results: Gut Microbiome was positively associated with obesity, and four bacterial genera (Akkermansia, RuminococcaceaeUCG011, Holdemania, and Intestinimonas) were associated with obesity according to inverse variance-weighted estimation in at least one MR method. Inverse variance weighted estimation showed that obesity was associated with obesity in Akkermansia (OR = 0.810, 95% CI 0.608–1.079, p = 0.04), RuminococcaceaeUCG011 (OR = 1.238, 95% CI 0. 511–2.999, p = 0.04), Holdemania Intestinimonas (OR = 1.214, 95% CI 1.002–1.470, p = 0.03), and Intestinimonas (OR = 0.747, 95% CI 0.514–1.086, p = 0.01) had a relevant effect. Obesity decreased the abundance of Akkermansia, Intestinimonas microbiome and increased the abundance of RuminococcaceaeUCG011, Holdemania microbiome.Conclusion: The results of this study, conducted using a two-sample Mendelian randomization method, suggest a causal relationship between obesity and intestinal microbiome. Obesity decreased the abundance of Akkermansia, Intestinimonas microbiome and increased the abundance of RuminococcaceaeUCG011, Holdemania microbiome. More randomized controlled trials are necessary to elucidate the protective effects of exercise on gut Microbiome and its unique protective mechanisms

Impeding the interaction between ​Nur77 and p38 reduces LPS-induced inflammation

该成果阐明了一条孤儿核受体Nur77通过p38-NF-κB信号通路参与炎症反应调控的新途径，为新的抗炎药物的筛选提供了新的靶标和理论基础。 吴乔课题组长期以来一直致力于孤儿核受体Nur77作用机理和生物学功能研究。该成果是吴乔课题组近年来在NatureChemicalBiology发表的第四篇系列研究论文，也是与不同学科领域相关课题组（包括结构生物学、化学生物学、天然产物药物研究等）合作的原创性成果。这些研究成果充分体现了学科交叉的优势，代表了相关研究的发展趋势。他们从分子机制、信号调控网络、共晶结构、小分子探针、药物靶点和疾病治疗等角度全面系统地阐明了Nur77作为临床重要的靶标，调控不同疾病的重要生物学功能，丰富和发展了孤儿核受体的理论知识，并且找到了能够降低血糖、抑制黑色素瘤生长和抗炎反应的小分子化合物，为治疗相关疾病提供了重要的先导化合物。该系列研究先后得到了多个国家自然科学基金重点项目和科技部“973”项目的长期支持。Sepsis, a hyperinflammatory response that can result in multiple organ dysfunctions, is a leading cause of mortality from infection. Here, we show that orphan nuclear receptor ​Nur77 (also known as ​TR3) can enhance resistance to lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced sepsis in mice by inhibiting NF-κB activity and suppressing aberrant cytokine production. ​Nur77 directly associates with ​p65 to block its binding to the κB element. However, this function of ​Nur77 is countered by the LPS-activated ​p38α phosphorylation of ​Nur77. Dampening the interaction between ​Nur77 and ​p38α would favor ​Nur77 suppression of the hyperinflammatory response. A compound, ​n-pentyl 2-[3,5-dihydroxy-2-(1-nonanoyl) phenyl]acetate, screened from a ​Nur77-biased library, blocked the ​Nur77-​p38α interaction by targeting the ligand-binding domain of ​Nur77 and restored the suppression of the hyperinflammatory response through ​Nur77 inhibition of NF-κB. This study associates the nuclear receptor with immune homeostasis and implicates a new therapeutic strategy to treat hyperinflammatory responses by targeting a ​p38α substrate to modulate ​p38α-regulated functions.This work was supported by grants from the National Natural Science Fund of China, the '973' Project of the Ministry of Science and Technology (91413113, 2014CB910602, 31370724, 31221065) and the Program of Introducing Talents of Discipline to Universities (B12001). The crystallographic data collection at Beamline BL17U1 at Shanghai Synchrotron Radiation Facility is gratefully acknowledged

Cistanches deserticola PhG-RE through Inhibiting ERS Apoptosis Mechanism to Protect Myocardial Cell Apoptosis from H2O2-Induced Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress

The herb Cistanche deserticola has some myocardial protective effects. This study attempted to explain the mechanism by which PhG-RE protects myocardial cells and verify if this protection occurs through regulating the apoptosis mechanism associated with endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS). Rat myocardial cells were exposed to 150 μg·mL−1 PhG-RE for 24 h and then to 100 μmol·mL−1 H2O2 for 18 h to induce ERS and establish a cell damage model. Thapsigargin (TG), a specific ERS activator, and 4-phenylbutyric acid (4-PBA), an ERS inhibitor, were used to validate the accuracy of the experiment. Our results demonstrated that PhG-RE significantly improved cell viability, protected cells, and reduced cell damage and apoptosis. PhG-RE played a role similar to that of the ERS inhibitor 4-PBA in protecting myocardial cells against apoptosis and damage induced by ER stress. Furthermore, PhG-RE significantly attenuated the mRNA expression of the ERS-associated apoptotic factors GRP78, CHOP, and Caspase-12 and the protein expression of the ERS-associated apoptotic factors GRP78, CHOP, Caspase-12, and p-JNK. Taken together, these findings suggest that PhG-RE can effectively protect myocardial cells and reduce cell apoptosis and damage, which may be related to the regulation of ERS-associated apoptosis

Exergy and CO2 Analyses as Key Tools for the Evaluation of Bio-Ethanol Production

The background of bioethanol as an alternative to conventional fuels is analyzed with the aim of examining the efficiency of bioethanol production by first (sugar-based) and second (cellulose-based) generation processes. Energy integration is of paramount importance for a complete recovery of the processes’ exergy potential. Based upon literature data and our own findings, exergy analysis is shown to be an important tool in analyzing integrated ethanol production from an efficiency and cost perspective

Dewaterability enhancement and sulfide mitigation of CEPT sludge by electrochemical pretreatment

Dewatering and sulfide control are the key challenges in treating chemically enhanced primary treatment (CEPT) sludge. In this study, an electrochemical pretreatment (EPT) approach with the input of 10 V/800 mA was explored for simultaneously improving the dewaterability of CEPT sludge and eliminating its sulfide production. The effects of different electrode materials (carbon and titanium) and EPT durations (from 5 to 15 min) were documented to reveal the underlying EPT mechanism. EPT with titanium electrodes (titanium-EPT) led to limited improvement in dewaterability and sulfide control. EPT with carbon electrodes (carbon-EPT) for 15 min, however, led to decreases in capillary suction time and specific resistance in filtration of over 80% and the suppression of about 99% of hydrogen sulfide (HS) production over 5 days of anaerobic storage. Analysis of the characteristics of treated CEPT sludge revealed that carbon-EPT disintegrated sludge flocs with ∼70% reduction in sludge particle sizes and release of aromatic and tyrosine protein-like substances, thus enhancing sludge dewaterability. The sulfur balance in the liquid and gaseous phases showed that most of the sulfur-containing compounds remained in the solid phase as aliphatic sulfur and sulfonic acid after carbon-EPT, thereby mitigating sulfide emission. While the pattern of sulfur distribution in sludge with titanium-EPT was dominated by sulfide, it was similar to the control sample. Reduction in bacteria associated with sulfide production (i.e., Lachnospiraceae) in CEPT sludge after carbon-EPT also contributed to sulfide elimination. This study demonstrates that EPT can be a superior option for simultaneously enhancing the dewaterability of CEPT sludge and mitigating its sulfide production

Bioethanol from Lignocellulosic Biomass: Current Findings Determine Research Priorities

“Second generation” bioethanol, with lignocellulose material as feedstock, is a promising alternative for first generation bioethanol. This paper provides an overview of the current status and reveals the bottlenecks that hamper its implementation. The current literature specifies a conversion of biomass to bioethanol of 30 to ∼50% only. Novel processes increase the conversion yield to about 92% of the theoretical yield. New combined processes reduce both the number of operational steps and the production of inhibitors. Recent advances in genetically engineered microorganisms are promising for higher alcohol tolerance and conversion efficiency. By combining advanced systems and by intensive additional research to eliminate current bottlenecks, second generation bioethanol could surpass the traditional first generation processes.status: publishe