Optimization and characterization of apple essence microencapsulation utilizing β-cyclodextrin/gum arabic/montmorillonite for fresh-cut apple preservation.

Natural apple essence (AE) has been widely used as a flavor enhancer due to its distinct aroma and taste, but its high volatility restricts its broader applications in food products. This study addresses the need for an effective microencapsulation technique to overcome the volatility of AE. The objective was to optimize and characterize the AE microencapsulation using β-cyclodextrin (β-CD), gum arabic (GA), and montmorillonite (MMT) as wall materials.

Gastric cancer-derived exosomal let-7 g-5p mediated by SERPINE1 promotes macrophage M2 polarization and gastric cancer progression.

Background: Tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs), particularly M2-polarized TAMs, are significant contributors to tumor progression, immune evasion, and therapy resistance in gastric cancer (GC). Despite efforts to target TAM recruitment or depletion, clinical efficacy remains limited. Consequently, the identification of targets that specifically inhibit or reprogram M2-polarized TAMs presents a promising therapeutic strategy.

Mitochondrial-cytochrome c oxidase II promotes glutaminolysis to sustain tumor cell survival upon glucose deprivation.

Glucose deprivation, a hallmark of the tumor microenvironment, compels tumor cells to seek alternative energy sources for survival and growth. Here, we show that glucose deprivation upregulates the expression of mitochondrial-cytochrome c oxidase II (MT-CO2), a subunit essential for the respiratory chain complex IV, in facilitating glutaminolysis and sustaining tumor cell survival. Mechanistically, glucose deprivation activates Ras signaling to enhance MT-CO2 transcription and inhibits IGF2BP3, an RNA-binding protein, to stabilize MT-CO2 mRNA.

Fabrication, characteristics and properties of α-lactalbumin fibril-derived hydrogels: Effects of metal ions type.

The effects of different valence metal ions on the formation of hydrogels with α-lactalbumin fibrils (ALAF) were comprehensively examined in this study. The properties of hydrogel were generally characterized with water holding capacity (WHC), rheology, texture, DSC and ICP tests. Except FeCl, it was shown that KCl, NaCl, CaCl, MgCl, NiCl, and AlCl at 90 mM could induce the formation of hydrogels with ALAF (40 mg/mL), and hydrogels formed by high valence metal salts had more good properties (viscoelasticity, WHC, and thermal stability), and the amounts of metal ions released from hydrogels with high valence salts after immersion in deionized water for 90 min were all below 10 %.